‘We have over 1.7bn litres in store’ – NNPC dismisses fuel scarcity fears

Mele Kyari, the group managing director of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC),  has allayed fears of fuel scarcity, saying there are 1.7 billion litres of fuel stored and 2.3bn litres coming soon.

Kyari’s statement followed recent media reports of a resurgence of queues at petrol stations in some parts of the country after the Independent Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) raised the alarm that private depot owners had increased the price of petrol by N9/litre.

The GMD, who spoke virtually from Glasgow on Tuesday at a conference organised by the Association of Energy Correspondents of Nigeria (NAEC), also explained why the federal government was demanding energy justice at the ongoing United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP26) in Glasgow, Scotland.

“As we speak now, there is speculation of fuel scarcity within the media but we have over 1.7bn litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) in the country.

“We have another 2.3bn litres coming in, so there is no shortage in supply as is being speculated.

“Of course, there are issues about pricing at some depots but the government has no plan to revise the pricing structure,” he said.

Black marketers, had on Monday and Tuesday, positioned themselves in strategic locations in parts of the Federal Capital Territory, hawking Premium Motor Spirit, popularly called petrol, in jerrycans to interested motorists and other consumers.

The black marketers took advantage of the scarcity of the product which had resurfaced due to the refusal of some filling station to dispense petrol.

Retailers had claimed that the ex-depot price of the commodity had been increased by private tank farm owners from the recommended N148 and N149.5/litre to between N153 and N155/litre.

This, according to them, has made many retailers to suspend the sale of the product coupled with their inability to get the required quantity, a development that led to the emergence of the black marketers.

Garba Deen Muhammad, the group general manager, Group Public Affairs Division, in a statement issued on Tuesday, said the corporation was also engaging all stakeholders to ensure smooth supply and distribution of products to every part of the country