The Nation Newspaper

Tag: diesel

  • 11 ships arrive Lagos ports with petrol, other products

    No fewer than 11 ships carrying various products are at Apapa and Tin-Can Island ports waiting to berth, the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) said on Wednesday in Lagos.

    It said three of the vessels contained petrol, while the remaining eight ships would berth with aviation fuel, uria, soya beans, bulk gas, diesel and fertilizer.

    The NPA stated that 32 other ships carrying buckwheat, vehicles, containers, steel, frozen fish, steel buckwheat, base oil and bulk gas were expected at the ports between July 3 and July 30.

    Read Also: Tanker spills fuel on Lagos road

    The other products expected are: base oil, bulk fertiliser, kerosene, general cargo and petrol.

  • Navy seizes 130,000 litres of illegally refined diesel, arrests 7

    MEN of the Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) Victory in Calabar, Cross River State, have seized a large wooden boat with about 130 litres of illegally refined Automative Gas Oil (AGO) commonly known as diesel. Also arrested along with the items were seven suspects. Addressing reporters while handing over the items and suspects to the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps (NSCDC), Commander of NNS Victory, Commodore Julius Nwagu, said they were intercepted along the Calabar channel.

    He said the boat contained 520 drums (250 litres each) of suspected illegally refined diesel. The Navy commander put the worth of the product at about N24 million. “My men on patrol intercepted a wooden boat laden with 520 drums of suspected illegally refined AGO and when I was informed, I asked them to arrest the boat and bring it to my base. That was done and the following day we commenced offloading and I am here to hand over the drums to Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps.

    “Seven men were arrested with the products. We are handing over everything. The Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ette Ibas, gave me directives and the directives were clear on issues of illegalities and I want to assure you that I will not blink until perpetrators of heinous sabotage to our national economy are brought to book. “On investigation, we found that that these products came from Rivers State and the final destination was Calabar before they ran into my security patrol boats,” Nwagu said. The Commander of the NSCDC in Cross River State, Haliru Usman Alhassan, thanked the Navy for a good job. “They are fighting illegality successfully, and this is a good synergy between the Nigerian Navy and the Nigerian Security and Civil Defense Corps. I am here to receive the items and suspects to be charged to court and prosecute them diligently,’’ Alhassan said.

  • 32 ships with food items, petroleum products to arrive Lagos ports

    32 ships with food items, petroleum products to arrive Lagos ports

    Thirty-two ships laden with food items,petroleum products and other goods are expected to arrive at Apapa Port and Tin Can Island Port in Lagos from March 5 to March 24.
    The Nigerian Ports Authority ( NPA ) stated this in its “Shipping Position’’ publication, a copy of which was made available to the newsmen in Lagos on Monday.
    It said that 12 ships out of the expected number had petrol consignment.

    READ ALSO: Farmers, others kick over N116b palm oil import

    According to it, the remaining 20 vessels contain bulk wheat, salt, bulk fertilizer, bulk sugar, diesel, crude palm olein, bulk gypsum and containers laden with goods.
    The publication indicated that eight ships carrying bulk fertilizer and petrol had already arrived at the ports and were waiting to berth.

    NAN

  • NNPC increased product distribution by 29 percent in September – Report 

    NNPC increased product distribution by 29 percent in September – Report 

    The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) distributed and sold about 1.3 billion litres of petroleum products throughout the country in the month of September, 2017.

    The figure was captured in the September 2017 edition of the monthly NNPC Financial and Operations Report which was released Monday in Abuja.

    The Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, Mr.  Ndu Ughamadu made this known in a statement Monday.

    The statement said that the figure shows a 29 per cent increase from the 950.67 million litres posted in the month of August 2017.

    According to the report, products which were distributed and sold by the Petroleum Products Marketing Company (PPMC), the downstream subsidiary of the NNPC comprised of about 1.2billion litres of petrol, 35.58 million litres of kerosene and 86.30 million litres of diesel. While total special products for the month of September 2017 was 9.29 million litres comprising of 7.43 million litres of Low Pour Fuel Oil (LPFO) and other special products of 1.86 million litres.

    The sale of white products (petrol, kerosene and diesel) for the period September 2016 to September 2017 stood at 15.61 billion litres. A further breakdown showed that petrol amounted to 13.65 billion litres and accounts for 87.45 per cent.

    In terms of average daily sales and distribution of petroleum products, the numbers indicated that 42,752, 626 million litres of petroleum were recorded during the period comprising a daily petrol distribution figure of 38,690,970 million litres, 2,876,745 million litres of diesel, 1,185,906 million litres of kerosene and 2,677,995 million litres of special products.

    In terms of revenue generation, PPMC posted a total sales figure of ₦151.42 billion for white products in the month of September 2017 compared to ₦111.36 billion sold in the prior month of August 2017.

    Total revenues generated from the sales of white products for the period September 2016 to September 2017 stood at ₦1,877.42 billion, where petrol contributed about 85.08% of the total sales with a value of ₦1,596.98 billion.

    The 26th edition of the NNPC Financial and Operations Report also highlighted that the corporation had sustained effective communication with stakeholders through this report via publications on its website and in national dailies.

    This is in line with the corporation’s commitment to becoming more accountable, responsive, and transparent and a FACTI based Organization.

    The September 2017 NNPC Financial and Operations Report is the 26th edition of the series.

     

  • Civil Defence arrests five with stolen diesel

    Delta State Command of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) has arrested five persons with two truckloads of suspected stolen diesel.

    The Commandant, Mrs. Beatrice Irabor, in an interview with News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Asaba yesterday, said operatives of the command, led by the Squad Commander, Mr. Asibor Michael, arrested the suspects with the trucks conveying 84,000 litres of diesel.

    She said they were nabbed, near Nsukwa junction in Aniocha South Local Government, adding that each of the trucks had 42,000 litres of diesel.

    Irabor said one of the trucks was registered as KRV92IZN.

    She said the operatives became suspicious of the trucks when they noticed that one of them had no number plate.

    The commandant said the suspects would be arraigned after investigation.

    She said the command would get rid of oil thieves, warning those indulged in oil theft to desist.

  • Marketers defy govt’s directives, sell diesel at N225

    Marketers are selling automotive gas oil (AGO), also known as diesel, at between N210 and N225 per litre across the country, months after the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) crashed the price by 42 per cent, from an all-time high of N300 per litre in January 2017 to N160 per litre in July, The Nation has learnt.

    Also, ex-depot prices of diesel, which dropped to between N135 and N155 per litre in July, when the NNPC cut the price of the product, have risen considerably.

    It was gathered that many outlets owned by the independent and major marketers have adjusted their pump price to between N210 and N225 per litre. However, a few outlets, including those owned by the NNPC, are selling diesel below N200 per litre.

    A visit to some filling stations in Egbeda, Ikeja, Ikorodu and other areas within the Lagos metropolis  showed that the price of diesel has shot up to over N200 per litre from N160; the price it was reduced to in July, in line with its strategic intervention programme of easing the burden of high cost of the product on consumers.

    Marketers, who spoke to The Nation, said the rise in the price of diesel was not surprising as the price of the product has been deregulated over the years. So, the price is determined by market forces of demand and supply, they said, adding that such developments are expected in a deregulated market.

    NNPC  spokesman Mr. Ndu Ughamadu attributed the increase to deregulation of that segment of the downstream sub-sector years back.

    Ughamadu told The Nation on phone that the deregulation resulted in the differential prices of petrol, diesel and kerosene, adding that the idea has paved way for what he described as free entry and free exit market regime in the sector.

    He said the NNPC was not suprised by the turn of events in the sector in view of the decision by the Federal Government to deregulate the industry.

    Ughamadu said: “NNPC was definitive in its statement that the market is influenced by the forces of supply and demand, and that the intervention was meant to ease the burdens of high cost of diesel on the consumers. The intervention is subject to the dynamics of demand and supply. When the demand for diesel is high, the price of the product will also be high. Conversely, when the demand is low, the price will also be low.”

    The Federal Government in June 2016, increased fuel prices across boards. To reduce the burdens on the users, the NNPC strategically intervened by reducing the price of diesel from N300 per litre to N160 per litre in July through flooding the market with the product.

    Part of the interventions include improving supply of diesel, remodeling of the product distribution to address sufficiency issue, and working hard with relevant stakeholders to improve distribution from refinery depots, by implementing a robust loading programme.

    The NNPC also partnered stakeholders such as the major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN), the Nigerian Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO), Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD) and the Independent Petroleum Marketers to improve fuel supply.

    Other efforts included the resuscitation of critical pipelines and depots in places such as Atlas Cove-Mosinmi, Port Harcourt Refinery, Kaduna Refinery, and the ongoing plans to revamp and commission other major pipelines across the country.

  • Navy arrests two men with illegally refined diesel

    The Navy in Ikot Abasi, Akwa Ibom State, has  handed over two young men to the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC).

    They were arrested for illegal possession of refined diesel.

    Commander of NNS Jubilee Ikot Abasi, Saidu Suleiman Garba said Anthony Usoro, 40, and Uyobong Emmanuel, 34, were caught with a vehicle loaded with illegally refined petroleum product.

    Garba said the suspects were arrested while conveying 20 cellophane bags containing about one and half drums of a product suspected to be illegally refined diesel from Port Harcourt, Rivers State, to sell in Akwa Ibom State.

    Handing the suspects over to the NSCDC yesterday  Saidu Suleiman Garba, represented by Commander Murtala Yunusa, said Usoro and Emmanuel were arrested last Sunday by Op Thunder along Oruk Anam axis of Aqua Ibom State with 20 cellophane bags of products suspected to be illegally refined diesel.

    He said: “The cellophane bags were stacked in the boot of a black Honda Legend Salon car, with registration number: DB 724 PH, and covered with cartons of Indomie noodles.

    ‘’The Navy recognises the jurisdiction and constitutional role of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps.’’

  • Navy arrests six Bangladeshi for stealing diesel

    Navy arrests six Bangladeshi for stealing diesel

    Operatives of the Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) Victory of the Nigerian Navy in Calabar have arrested six Bangladesh nationals and 16 Nigerians for allegedly diverting 22 metric tonnes of diesel in an illegal Ship to Ship (STS) transfer along the Calabar water channel.

    Commander NNS Victory, Commodore Salihu Ibn Danhu Jibril, the vessel, NV Princess Oge, which brought the product from offshore Lome to deliver to a tank farm in Calabar was discovered carrying out the illegal activity and immediately arrested.

    Addressing reporters on board the vessel along the Calabar Channel before handing over the suspects and vessel to the Nigerian Police yesterday, Jibril said the Princess Oge was a bunkering ship given permission to deliver and discharge cargo in Calabar.

    “Along the way, she was found to have found transfer to ship transfer illegally to another ship and consequently we arrested the ship.

    “She was arrested and brought here and having conducted our investigation and found their operation in line with our harmonised standard procedures for illegal activities in the marine environment, we are formally handing over the ship, crew and cargo to the Nigerian Police for further investigation and prosecution.

    “The suspects include 22 persons of different nationalities. We have six from Bangladesh and 16 Nigerians.

    “The vessel was given permission to move AGO cargo to Calabar. In line with extant regulations, we are handing them over to the police.

    “The quantity that was diverted illegally was 22 metric tonnes missing from the initial cargo that she was supposed to deliver from what she took at the port of intake.

    “The port of intake was offshore Lome, and is supposed to one of the tank farms in Calabar.”

  • 26-year-old arraigned for ‘stealing’ diesel

    A 26-year-old man, Oluwafemi Ogunkunle, was at the weekend, arraigned at an Ikeja Chief Magistrates’ Court in Lagos State for allegedly stealing 15,600 litres of diesel.

    The defendant, a fuel attendant, who lives at Lafenwa Itele, Ogun State, is being tried for stealing.

    The prosecutor, Clifford Ogu, said the offence was committed on August 9, at Cryslad Avenue, Agege, a suburb of Lagos.

    He said when the account was audited, it was discovered 15,600 litres of diesel, valued at N2.574 million, was not remitted to the company’s account.

    “Fingers pointed at the accused, because the missing money was detected at the diesel pump he was attached to,” Ogu said.

    He added that the case was reported at the police station and the accused was arrested.

    The offence contravened Section 287 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.

    The accused pleaded not guilty.

    Chief Magistrate Mrs. Taiwo Akanni granted the accused bail at N500,000 with two sureties.

    She adjourned the case till September 4 for mention.

  • NSCDC destroys impounded fuel, diesel, kerosene

    NSCDC destroys impounded fuel, diesel, kerosene

    Thousands of litres of illegally-refined petroleum products were at the weekend destroyed in Bayelsa State by the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC).

    The products consisting of diesel, fuel and kerosene, seized from oil thieves by the anti-vandal team of the NSCDC, were burnt at a designated area in Yenagoa, the state capital.

    Suspected oil thieves and vandals were reportedly transporting them in sacks and nylon bags to an unknown destination when they were intercepted by the team.

    A state Deputy Commandant of NSCDC, Chikere Isidoh, who conducted the destruction, said the suspects on sighting the operatives of NSCDC along Ogbia axis of the state abandoned the products and fled into the bush.

    Isidoh said the seized substances were loaded in over 60 bags with each bag containing 60 litres.

    He said the command took the action as part of the federal government’s war against oil theft, vandalism and illegal refining of petroleum products.

    He said the corps would not spare anybody caught for illegal oil deals, adding suspects when apprehended with their products must face the wrath of the law.

    Isidoh said: “We are destroying some illegally-refined petroleum products impounded by our anti-vandal unit.

    “They were impounded while on routine patrol within Ogbia axis. Some of them are illegally refined kerosene, diesel and petrol.

     

    “They were loaded in about 60 bags and each of them is 60 litres. We have approximately 4000 litres.

    “We are destroying them to let the public know that it is against the federal government rule for anybody to embark on illegal processing of petroleum products.

    “And by destroying it we are discouraging persons engaged in this kind of activities so that they will desist from doing it. Any time we catch them we will impound their products and prosecute them.”

    The deputy commandant also noted that the corps was not in the business of selling products seized from vandals.

    He said they would never engage in any practice that could jeopardise their assignments adding that the command maintained records of seized products.