The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Scarcity

  • Black marketers hit Abuja roads as fuel scarcity worsens

    Black marketers hit Abuja roads as fuel scarcity worsens

    The scarcity of the Premium Motor Spirit  (PMS) yesterday took a different dimension as black marketers took over Abuja roads,  especially around petrol retail outlets.

    Their action followed the unavailability of the product at  petrol stations as most of the retail outlets were not opened to customers.

    The product that should have officially sold for N86.00 and N86.50 at the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC)  stations and independent stations respectively was sold for N2,000 per 10 litres by hawkers that sold in plastic kegs.

    This worsen the traffic jam around the stations where most hawkers displayed their stock unmolested.

    The NIPCO at Kubwa on the same expressway  sold fuel to customers at the official price.

    Some of the customers said they spent over two hours to get the product, while others queued up in locked stations in anticipation of sale.

    The fuel situation was  yesterday a far cry from the promise of the Pipeline Products Marketing Company  (PPMC) that queues would disappear from retail outlets by weekend.

    Meanwhile, the current scarcity of the PMS may end this weekend as more depots in Lagos State begin massive load out of the product as from Monday, The Nation has learnt.

    The Minister of  State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, it was gathered, has directed the Products and Pipeline Marketing Company (PPMC), an arm of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), to supply substantial volume of fuel to some credible independent marketing companies to ensure the queues at filling stations end this week.

    To further stall reoccurrence of another round of scarcity, the government has told the marketers that the second quarter (Q2) fuel importation allocation will be done on March 15 or 16 to forestall a gap in supply.

    The Nation learnt that some independents, including Ascon Oil, NIPCO and Capital Oil, will begin massive loading of fuel as from Monday. NIPCO, for instance, was supplied 15 million litres, a source said.

    The source also said the major marketers, including Mobil, Oando, Total MRS, and Conoil, had steady supply from the NNPC since the beginning of the week. The spokesman of Mobil Oil Nigeria Plc, the products marketing arm of the multinational oil firm, Mr. Akin Fatunke, also corroborated the statement.

    Fatunke also noted that due to foreign exchange issue, all the private companies apart from Mobil and Total have not been importing.

    He said Mobil took delivery of a ship load of fuel, which was 4.7 million litres of petrol Monday and took delivery of another 20 million litres Thursday. He urged the public to have confidence because the situation will normalise.

    “We have loaded out many trucks today (yesterday) from our depot. Our concern first, is to ensure that customers are satisfied. We have taken delivery of the 20 million litres, and we will load as much as possible. Our customers should be patient,” he added.

    The Nation‘s survey yesterday showed that more filling stations have begun to sell, and the queues were not long. Mobil filling stations at Agidingbi, Ogba, Agege and Oregun roads, as well as Oando filling stations at Anthony, Berger, Ogba as well as Bovas along Ogunnusi Road, Total at Obanikoro and Conoil opposite LASUTH Ikeja, were all selling at approved prices and the queues were not so long.

    The Executive Secretary, Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN), Mr. Obafemi  Olawore, also said the queues will vanish this weekend. He said the NNPC since Wednesday has stepped up petrol supply to Lagos from 97 million litres to 10.2 million litres. He said the NNPC imports about 78 per cent of national demand and that is putting pressure on distribution because of logistics constraints.

    However, he was optimistic that the importation ratio of 78:22 percent for NNPC and other marketers respectively may be reviewed next quarter, but urged the government to be courageous enough to deregulate the downstream.

  • Fuel scarcity: NLC accuses marketers of sabotage

    Fuel scarcity: NLC accuses marketers of sabotage

    The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) yesterday accused oil marketers of sabotaging supply and distribution of petroleum products to promote privatisation of the downstream sector of oil and gas.

    NLC gave the management of Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company till Monday to recall 400 sacked workers or have its facilities shut down by organised labour and its civil society allies.

    In separate statements by its President, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, the union said despite the parlous state of the refineries, they remain one of the best in the world and can be upgraded.

    Wabba said the refineries needed an effective turnaround maintenance.

    He added that the refineries were abandoned to ensure Nigerians were ambushed by proponents of privatisation.

    The labour leader said those advocating sale of the refineries were waiting to buy them because they know the refineries are one of the best.

    The statement reads:  “We believe the recurrent scarcity of petroleum products is part of the roadmap designed by forces wishing to hoodwink us into accepting privatisation of the refineries.

    “We are disturbed by the recurring scarcity of petroleum products, especially the Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), popularly known as petrol, which has caused long queues at some fuel stations while many more have closed, claiming non-availability of the product.

    “Nigerians are yet to be told what the cause of the scarcity is. We, however, believe government will not allow any individual or corporate organisations to sabotage its good intentions, as it is obvious the scarcity is a calculated design by petroleum marketers to sell the products at high prices for more profits.

    “Petroleum products, especially petrol, is key to our economy, as it is what powers commuters, including workers, offices and businesses. The delays motorists contend with  at petrol stations have led to loss of man hours, which have impacted negatively on our economy.

    “We, therefore, call on government to intervene by sending out appropriate agencies, especially the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), to enforce sale of the products as some marketers have reportedly been hoarding the products.

    “We restate our call for the speedy reactivation of local production of petroleum products as the country will continue to be held hostage by global economic manipulations, if we remain tied to importation of petroleum products even when we have the resources to produce for local consumption and export.’’

    The congress frowned at the decision of Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company to terminate 400 workers without due process.

    NLC president said the union would not condone such action, especially considering the fact that the decision was taken without justification.

  • Scarcity returns

    •Economy threatened as Nigerians queue for fuel again

    Once again, Nigerians have been exposed to the gruelling effect of scarcity of petroleum products, especially, the premium motor spirit, petrol. Motorists have had to sleep in dispensing stations In major towns like Lagos, Abuja, Port-Harcourt, Kano and Kaduna. In the process, man-hours are lost and energy that could have been put to better use sapped.

    It is unfortunate, too, that a direct consequence was hike in the cost of transportation. It is all a familiar path.

    Shortly after the current administration replaced the Jonathan government, shortage attributed to inability to redeem the fuel subsidy that had become a means of siphoning national resources made life unbearable for Nigerians. After taming the monster that drilled holes in the pockets of many Nigerians and companies, the Buhari government promised there would not be a repeat. Now that it appears that the government has tactically removed the fuel subsidy, the monster has reappeared. The cause, this time, is said to be non-availability of dollars for the independent importers of the products, and even the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

    We call on the government to quickly put its house in order and address the pains caused by the scarcity. While we acknowledge that our export earning has shrunk as a result of the crash in the price of crude oil which is the mainstay of the economy, government ought to set its priorities right. Supply of petroleum products to motorists and homes is a priority that should not be toyed with.

    The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) that supplies dollars and other foreign exchange to the market has a role to play in ensuring that the forex is made available to the NNPC and other firms involved in importation of the commodity. In addition, the commercial banks that have been identified as contravening instructions of the government banker should be severely sanctioned with a view to stopping the practice.

    Government also ought to get interested in how the imported products are distributed. Many of the petroleum marketers have complained that even at the best of times, they had been unable to get the product at the official price from the depots. Many of the depots are said to be disused with activities concentrated around the Atlas Cove in Lagos. Such concentration is prone to constituting bottlenecks to distribution. Days after the Pipelines and Products Marketing Company (PPMC), a subsidiary of the NNPC, said consignments had been received, the impact is yet to be felt at the retail end.

    This should be a cause for worry because it suggests that the distribution chain is faulty or there are saboteurs within the system. Security officials should find out what the problem is. The current economic woes have brought so much misery upon the people that fuel scarcity must be checked immediately.

    Incidentally, President Muhammadu Buhari is the Minister of Petroleum Resources. The buck therefore stops at his desk. This cycle of shortage of fuel supply and the attendant hardships are unacceptable.  It is to be noted that the products are also used to power the industries and light homes in the absence of electricity supply. This, too, has been disrupted by the shortages. It is another setback in the quest to resuscitate the industries, make the country productive and empower artisans. This, too, should worry the government.

    We urge the government to revisit the reports submitted by the committees set up by its predecessor in the wake of the 2012 fuel riots. One, headed by Dr. Kalu Idika Kalu, examined how to encourage the establishment of refineries as well as revive the existing ones. Another, headed by Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, worked on processes and mechanisms for revitalising the NNPC. The reports which the Jonathan government found difficult to implement could help in introducing good governance in the oil sector.

  • Blame NNPC for fuel scarcity, says PTD

    Blame NNPC for fuel scarcity, says PTD

    The Petroleum Tankers Drivers (PTD) Branch of National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) has blamed the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) for the fuel scarcity in some parts of the country.

    PTD National Chairman Comrade Salimon Akanni Oladiti, who spoke in an interview with reporters in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, said oil marketers were not hoarding fuel.

    “We are not conniving with anybody to make Nigerians suffer for fuel. For some time now, we have not been able to load at NNPC depot in Apata, Ibadan and there is no hope of loading in some other NNPC depots in the Southwest.

    “Government is responsible for this problem, because if they bring enough oil into the country, we as distributors we are ready to sell it out. It’s so sad that we are one of the largest producers of oil, but we are still suffering from scarcity,” he said

    Oladiti added: “NNPC imports about 75 per cent of the oil we are consuming in the country. The remaining 25 percentage is for major marketers.

    “What the government is trying to tackle still exist; corruption is still in the oil industry. There is corruption and bribery at the oil depots and you have to face this hurdle before you can load your truck.”

    He noted that government needs to find lasting solution to incessant fuel scarcity, adding: “The common man in the country is suffering.”

    He urged the government to embark on aggressive rehabilitations of roads and railway networks

  • Fuel scarcity bites harder in Lagos

    Long queues of vehicles have returned to filling stations in Lagos. No thanks to fuel scarcity.

    Many filling stations did not open for business. Others that opened and sold fuel at the official pump price of N86.50 were observed deducting N50 or N100 from buyers, depending on the quantity of litres they bought.

    When The Nation visited some filling stations in the metropolis, the queues of residents buying in jerry cans were longer than that of motorists.

    The situation was compounded by poor power supply.

    The queues created gridlock along the routes housing filling stations and the highways, especially at the Omole junction to Berger on Lagos-Ibadan road.

    A Keke Marwa operator in Agege, Timothy, said he bought 10 litres of fuel and the fuel attendant collected N100 as bribe from him.

    He said: “When will I stop to suffer in this country. I couldn’t even say a word when she deducted the money because I was on queue for over six hours. I just needed to work today because we don’t pay for any ticket on Sundays.”

    A resident in Oshodi, Mr. Jobi Atobatele, said he had to leave his house to buy fuel because he could not stand the heat.

    “I sent my son last night to buy fuel, but he said the queue was long and that they only attended to area boys. I am out today and I must say the situation is not better.

    “I will make sure I buy fuel because we hardly have light these days. I refuse to adapt to things like this because it is painful. Everything changed in the country within weeks. Where is the problem from?” he lamented.

    Another resident, Joseph, said: “It is a recurring problem that seems to define logic. There is always one explanation or the other. We just need to refine our oil locally. Anything short of that, we will continue to be at the mercy of international suppliers.”

    A driver, Mufule Suraj, said he bought petrol in a jerry can last week to avoid long queues.

    “I don’t pray to face what happened last year, when I resumed at filling stations at 4am. This fuel scarcity has been happening for about two weeks, but yesterday’s scenario was worse.

    “Most of us work freely on Sundays without disturbance from area boys, but today, we bus drivers are at filling stations for tomorrow’s business. We need help in this country. For how long do we want to do this? The Federal Government shouldn’t allow it to exceed this week.”

    Babatunde Adisa, an analyst, said it was unfortunate that “Nigerians are still lamenting over scarcity of fuel at this stage of our nationhood”.

    “We are one of the largest producers of the product in the world. One would have thought that the current administration would have found a lasting solution to the perennial fuel shortage, which was one of its cardinal points during the electioneering period.

    “Already, we can see the effects of fuel scarcity, which include worsening poverty level and rise in inflation. If it is not addressed in time, this scarcity may lead to another social unrest. It appears the oil marketers are literally holding the nation by the jugular. In my view, this is an artificial scarcity,” he said.

  • Edo moves to halt bread scarcity

    Edo moves to halt bread scarcity

    Edo State Government has begun moves to end scarcity of bread in the state as bakers in the state embarked on strike action.

    Prices of bread in the state had soared by over 50% with bread formally sold for N200 now goes for N300 and above.

    Commissioner for Commerce and Industry, Abdul Oroh, who spoke at the meeting with Masters Bakers and bread distributors said steps were being taken to reverse the hike in prices of bread.

    Oroh urged the Masters Bakers to resume full production of bread and assured that the state government would consider issues of multiple taxation raised by the bakers.

    Chairman of Masters Bakers Association, Mr. Agbonze Benjamin, listed multiple taxation harassment by government agents and high cost of ingredients as reasons for the hike in prices of bread.

    Agbonze said the prices of bread would be revisited to make bread affordable if the state government addressed issues raised by the association.

    Chairman of Edo State Bakers Association, Deacon Nosakhare Eghobamien, said the increase in prices of bread was inevitable because of the increasing price of production.

  • Petrol new pump price: DPR begins enforcement in Plateau

    Petrol new pump price: DPR begins enforcement in Plateau

    The Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) has begun to visit filling stations in Plateau to ensure that major and independent marketers comply with the new pump price of N86.50 per litre as directed by the Federal Government.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports in Pankshin that officials of the department are currently visiting the central and southern zones of the state to ensure total compliance.

    The department’s team Leader and Human Resources Assistant, Mr Habib Yahaya, told NAN in Pankshin on Saturday that it was useful for both major and independent marketers to comply with the new pump price.

    “All NNPC Mega Stations are expected to sell the fuel at a pump price of N86.00 per litre while major and independent marketers are suppose to sell at N86.50 per litre.

    “Anything above these two official pump prices would attract serious sanctions from our department, ’’ he said.

    Yahaya expressed concern about the attitude of some of the independent and major marketers who he accused of avoiding them.

    “When they heard we are coming they quickly closed down and run away from the filling station so that we could not check the volume of what they had in stock,’’ he observed.

    Yahaya called on the public to alert DPR of any erring filling station that would not sell at the official pump price of N86.50.

    “This because we are aware that most of the operators of these filling stations revert to old prices of their choices whenever we are out of their domain, ’’ he said.

    The DPR official warned that any filling station caught flaunting the directive of the government would face the wrath of the department.

    He pledged that the DPR would do all it could to ensure that motorists and commuters were not subjected to hardships.

  • Fuel: the scarcity this time

    Fuel: the scarcity this time

    •Elevated responses expected with President Buhari as Oil Minister

    Just when Nigerians thought they had voted out scarcity of petroleum products and long queues at the dispensing stations, it seems they are back to square one. A situation that started tentatively and in isolated places at the beginning of November has lingered. It has also become more pervasive and widespread across the country with marketers giving indications that scarcity may be with us till Christmas.

    The last petrol crisis was in the last days of the President Goodluck Jonathan administration just before the handover of government to President Muhammadu Buhari. Upon transition, the entire scarcity palaver had vanished as if the new president waved a wand. Suddenly, marketers who were whining over fuel subsidy payments seemed to reach an unspoken understanding with the new regime and pronto, fuel was everywhere in abundance and queues disappeared.

    Most remarkably, the pump price normalized back to N87 per litre from as high as N300 per litre that petrol rose to at that time. Thus since June this year up until end of October, Nigerians had enjoyed a period of regular petroleum products supply at the regulated rate to the point that some people must have thought the ugly old days were over for good. Indeed, unfettered fuel supply has been noted as one of the gains of the Buhari administration and an example of his ability to make crucial changes in the polity without as much as lifting a finger – ‘body language’, it is called.

    Following upon this new talisman, many had even argued that there was no subsidy after all. But the so-called subsidy was always there and was mounting in size over the past five months. Today, it is said to stand at about N413 billion and the federal government has been hit with that sum. But even though the government may be willing to pay, it is said that the time lag between payment and the next cycle of imports of products may take the scarcity to Christmas. There is also the issue of sourcing foreign exchange.

    Here is how a marketer made the case: “In recent times, we have been having issues with getting enough forex for our deals. Now we have a huge sum ofN413 billion entering the system; loans will be paid in forex as well as payments for products from international suppliers.

    The Central Bank of Nigeria is not giving us a clear directive in this regard. We will need forex but we do not know where to get it in this quantum. Right now, the truth is that marketers don’t know how to source forex with the recent CBN provision.”

    While the prospect of Nigerians living with this grueling situation of fuel scarcity and high prices till Christmas may be dire, the real issue is that the new government of President Buhari is expected to have taken the country out of debilitating incongruence of suffering in the midst of plenty. Nigeria is among the top ten producers of crude oil in the world yet she cannot produce enough for domestic consumption.

    In the last three decades or so, Nigeria has exported crude oil and  imported refined petroleum products at a huge economic cost. Nigerians will expect a lasting solution now more than ever before. It may be time to review the so-called subsidy and cut it in phases; government must set up a few modular refineries in the next two years if only to refine for domestic consumption.

    Nigerians who bear the brunt of this petrol paradox must be let down that the All Progressives Congress (APC) government has allowed this return to the PDP era and with President Buhari as substantive Petroleum Minister, we urge him to devise a long-term strategic solution to this malaise immediately.

  • Petrol price soars as scarcity persists nationwide

    Petrol price soars as scarcity persists nationwide

    Pump price of petrol has continued to increase in towns across the country as scarcity of the product persists on Wednesday, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports.

    A survey by NAN in major cities across the country shows that long queues have characterised the few fuel stations that are selling the product, while others remained closed.

    Some residents in Osun expressed worry over the lingering scarcity of petrol, which according to them, has worsened the living conditions of the people.

    Mr Sulaimon Ayoola, a commercial driver at Orita-Sabo in Osogbo, said the scarcity of petrol was adversely affecting businesses in the area.

    He said that a litre of petrol was being sold for between N120 and N140 per litre at few fuel stations with long queues.

    Mrs Tejumola Oso, a trader in the Orisunbare Market in Osogbo, said the high transport fares, caused by the scarcity of petrol, had affected sales in the market.

    She urged the Federal Government to quickly intervene to ease the sufferings of the people.

    A Public Affairs Analyst, Mr Dotun Deinde, described the current situation as unfortunate and urged government to immediately arrest the situation.

    NAN reports that the situation was the same in Keffi in Nasarawa State as residents agreed that government should end to the lingering fuel scarcity.

    Mrs Cecilia Austin, a commuter, said she paid N700 from Keffi to Lafia against the usual N500.

    She said the scarcity of the petroleum products was causing untold hardship to her and many others in the area.

    She advised the Federal Government to take strong measures against petroleum dealers and marketers who were hoarding petroleum products.

    Austin advised government and marketers to address the problem immediately for social and economic development of the country.

    “It is unfortunate and uncalled for that some selfish fuel marketers are creating artificial scarcity of petroleum products in the country.

    Mr Emmanuel Anejuka, another commuter, urged government to quickly address the difficulties being experienced by Nigerians.

    Mr Haruna Abdullahi, a commercial driver, accused fuel stations of sharp practices, saying that many of them had adjusted their metres above the N87.00 per litre official pump price.

    Ayuba Danjuma, another motorist, said that petrol scarcity had forced him and other drivers in the area to resort to patronising the black market.

    NAN reports that only three fuel stations were dispensing fuel with long queues out of the 13 fuel stations in Keffi.

    Residents in Owerri and other communities in Imo also urged the Federal Government to urgently address the scarcity to ease the sufferings of Nigerians.

    Correspondents of NAN, who monitored petrol sales in Owerri and other towns across Imo, report that petrol was being sold between N140 and N200 per litre.

    Many fuel stations on Port Harcourt Road, Orji Road, and Egbu Road in Owerri sold a litre of the product for between N150 and N165 per litre.

    NAN also reports that the petrol stations in other parts of the town sold the product for between N170 and N200 per litre.

    Mr Ndubuisi Emenike, a motorist, appealed to the President to find solution to the lingering petrol scarcity to restore the confidence of Nigerians on the APC-led government.

    “During the 2015 general elections, Nigerians massively supported the ‘’Change’’ mantra of the APC on the grounds that things will get better,’’.

    Another motorist, Mrs Ngozi Duru, said she went out as early as 6.45 a.m. with her children in school uniforms in the hope of getting petrol, but could not find the product to buy.

    NAN reports that intra-city and inter-city transport fares across Imo have gone up by more than 100 per cent due to the hike in the pump price of petrol.

    In Port Harcourt, most filling stations in the city were yet to commence sale of the product to motorists.

    Residents lamented the scarcity in spite of claims by the NNPC on Nov. 16 that it had deployed 38.277 million litres of petrol to depots across the country.

    Many fuel stations in the area visited by NAN sold the product for between N200 to N215 per litre.

    NAN reports that some petrol vendors are taking advantage of the situation as a 10-litre jerry-can of petrol now goes for N3, 000, while 20-litre can cost N6, 000.

    One NNPC filling station in the city sold the product at the official pump price of N87 per litre, but with long queues of motorists and other users.

    Prices of other petroleum products such as kerosene and diesel have remained unchanged at government approved prices of N50 and N125 per litre, respectively.

    A manager of a major filling station in the city told NAN, on condition of anonymity, that petroleum depots and tank farms were hoarding products over subsidy arrears owed by the Federal Government.

    The source said that depot owners now sold the petrol at high prices at night.

    “We load petrol at a very high rate at depots and as such we have to also sell at a higher price so as to make profit,’’ he said.

    According to him, if government does not intervene quickly, the product will be sold as high as N300 to N500 per litre in the next one to two weeks.

    On the reasons most stations’ metres still read N87 per litre whereas they sell above the official price, the source said the concealment was for fear of being sanctioned by the authorities.

     

  • Commuters groan amid fuel scarcity in Aba

    Commuters groan amid fuel scarcity in Aba

    Fuel scarcity is taking its toll on commuters in Aba, the commercial hub of Aia State and the Southeast.

    Capitalising on the difficulties of finding the golden liquid, transporters have jerked up fares to the discomfort of their passengers.

    One of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation’s depots at Osisioma on the outskirts of the business city is yet to receive product, causing majority of the filling stations in the city to be closed. A few where the products are available sell at exorbitant prices.

    The Nation investigation reveals that most of the filling stations dispensed petrol at a pump price of between N110 and N120 while in the black market it sold for between N120 and N150, a situation that has affected cost of transportation in  most parts of Enyimba City.

    From Park to Osisioma which usually cost N70 now costs between N100 and N150. Park to No 1 Port Harcourt road rose from N30 to N50. Park to Ariaria initially was N50, but can take up to N150 or less; depending on the flow of traffic on the busy Faulks Road etc even as a trip from Aba to Umuahia the state capital also witnessed a sharp increase as transporters attribute the increase to high cost diesel and PMS.

    Some of the petroleum marketers who spoke anonymously debunked the insinuations that they were hoarding petroleum products, adding that they were selling the products above the official pump price to cover their expenses as they went out of their ways to source the products outside the southeast which they equally got higher than the usual official price.

    A cross section of respondents who spoke to our reporter over the issue in Aba said that the situation was becoming excruciating on them that the federal government needs to do all it can to address the situation and to also get the country’s refineries working to upmost capacity.

    They also expressed the fears that if nothing was done to ameliorate the situation, the prices of petroleum products could further rise beyond the current price which further ruin the mood of the festive period and also affect the price of commodities in the market beyond the affordability of the common man.

    The residents further called for the prompt supply of petroleum products to the Osisioma Depot as soon as possible in order to salvage the situation and feared that if the situation continues, it could further lead to having adverse effect on business and economic activities in the city and therefore plead federal government and the responsible bodies to put heads together and see how the situation can be nip in the bud and save the people from further agony.