Business

Xmas: No Long Queues At Filling Stations – Ajumogobia

Published

13 years ago

December 24, 2009

We’ll try and make sure from the (Federal) Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Dr. Rilwanu Lukeman (the Minister) and myself – that there are no queues at the filling sations that people became used to several years ago, that resulted in people having a very bleak Christmas because instead of spending time with your family, you are spending time queuing at the filling station.”

This assurance was given by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Hon. Odein Ajumogobia to Nigerians in an interview with The Tide in Abuja in reaction to long queues witnessed at some filling stations in Abuja.

Ajumogobia further assured: “We are doing everything in time to ensure that there is adequate supply of fuel. We are also doing what we can to ensure that people sell the product until such a time the market will be deregulated at the price that government has indicated and with the hope that we in the meantime will build the necessary stakeholders consensus on deregulation.”

The Minister was emphatic that the current situation of some filling stations in parts of the country where long queues are noticed will abate as the government is tackling the situation head-on to ensure no queue is seen at filling stations across the country throughout the yuletide season.

Ajumogobia who was speaking with The Tide after a tour of some filling stations in Abuja where long queues where noticed, including the NNPC mega station along Olusegun Obasanjo Way, Central Business District, blamed the situation on ‘hoarding’ of products and ‘inordinate ambition’ of some Nigerians to make profit at all cost, noting that government has risen to the challenge and would bring relief to motorists throughout the festive season.

“The queues you saw recently were not across the country, although I did see some media reports suggesting they were across the country; they were limited to Abuja. They arose out of a financial dispute between some members of the Petroleum Tankers Drivers’ Association and MTEL; and this led to an embargo of fuel into Abuja. But I am happy to say we were able to intervene and the embargo was lifted,” he said.

The Minister of State for Petroleum explained that the resurgence of the queues last week has been due to hoarding and corrupt tendencies where products have been loaded for distribution into Abuja but have been diverted and not been sold at filling stations in Abuja, adding that they discovered that the tankers often only offload part of their contents while holding on to the rest of it with the aim of profiteering. I think it is absolutely related to the marketers’ expectation of the removal of the subsidy and the deregulation of the market – people are, in anticipation of that, beginning to do what they often do at this time of the year which is to hoard and to try to make inordinate profit.”

He however added that due to the regulated nature of the market, only a few people have licences to import, so they control where their fuel goes and could easily exploit the situation to their advantage. Ajumogobia assured Nigerians that government was doing its best to monitor and regulate, warning that “we will bring to book those who take advantage of their dominant position in the market place by terminating the privilege that a regulation policy confers on them.

He said, the refineries were not functioning presently as a result of “senseless vandalism – damage to the crude lines that feed them, a situation that made the nation to be 100 per cent dependent on importation.

“What government is doing is to issue licences to major marketers under pre-existing arrangement to supplement NNPC’s guarantee of adequate supply. NNPC is doing its own bit to ensure supply but we have to appeal to those who market the product not to exploit their fellow citizens by taking advantage of the fact of this festive season when demand typically goes up as a result of lots of people travelling,” he enthused.

Asked to state categorically if Nigerians should expect a hitch-free Christmas, in terms of the availability and purchase of petroleum products across the country, he snapped: “Yes, we are working to make it hitch-free. We are doing everything we can.”

Ajumogobia assured the nation further: “I think, this is the third Christmas that I would have in the saddle and I think Nigerians will testify that this will be the third Christmas that has been hitch-free from the perspective of fuel supply despite myriad challenges.

Last year, we didn’t have queues at filling stations, the Christmas the year before – 2007 – the same. We hope that this year will be the same.”

Justus Awaji, Abuja

Business

Plastic Pollution, Threat To Mangroves In N’Delta – HYPREP

Published

1 day ago

June 9, 2023

The Tide

The Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HYPREP) has expressed concerns that plastic pollution was an emerging threat to mangroves in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria.
It stated it would soon commence the shoreline clean up and mangrove restoration of oil-impacted areas in Ogoniland.
The Project Coordinator of HYPREP, Prof Nenibarini Zabbey, in his address to mark the 2023 World Environment Day, expressed regrets that plastics do not only suffocate and kill mangrove biodiversity, but also impact local livelihoods and compromises mangroves’ capacity to sequester and mitigate climate change.
According to him, a project with a mandate to remediate and restore oil-polluted ecosystems, HYPREP, was positioned to offer solutions to plastic pollution, which synergistically mitigate the effects of hydrocarbon contamination.
“The 2023 WED commemoration, which also marks the 50th World Environment Day celebration, presents a golden opportunity to deploy science, adapt innovation, and develop sustainable policies towards addressing environmental problems.
“HYPREP is about to commence shoreline cleanup and mangrove restoration in Ogoniland. Recently, plastic pollution has been identified as an emerging threat to mangroves in the Niger Delta”, he noted.
In proffering solutions to plastic pollution flex in line with the 2023 WED theme, the HYPREP boss recommended a reduction in plastic production and consumption, and the promotion of sustainable alternatives and reusable products.

Business

ICAN Urges Accountant General To Prioritise Financial Stability

Published

1 day ago

June 9, 2023

The Tide

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN) has called on the new Accountant-General (AG) of the Federation, Dr Oluwatoyin Madein, to ensure financial stability, transparency, and accountability in the country’s financial sector.
According to a statement, the President of ICAN, Dr Innocent Okwuosa, gave the admonition in Abuja, Tuesday, when he paid the new Accountant-General of the Federation a courtesy call in Abuja.
“The position of the Accountant-General of Nigeria carries immense responsibilities, especially now that Nigeria stands at a pivotal juncture, facing a rapidly evolving economic landscape, changing regulatory frameworks coupled with endemic corruption.
“As the Accountant-General, you have the responsibility for maintaining the financial stability, transparency and accountability of the nation as a whole”, he told the AG.
He, however, assured her of ICAN’s continued support to her office to ensure effective management of government finances, implementing, monitoring, and evaluating the country’s budget and other fiscal management obligations.
“We understand the enormity of your responsibilities and we will continue to encourage you and all our members in the public service and private sectors to adhere to the profession’s ethics to succeed”, he continued.
Okwuosa also used the opportunity to appraise the AGF of the ICAN Accountability Index, one of the institute’s innovations to contribute to the promotion of accountability and transparency in the Federation.
According to him, it is a novel and first-of-its-kind Index developed to assist the adoption of best practices in Public Financial Management in all tiers of government.
He added that the ICAN-AI had been ratified by several national and international organisations such as the World Bank, the Public Expenditure and Financial Accountability and the International Federation of Accountants as an equitable and professional way of monitoring Public Financial Management practices.

In her response, the Accountant-General conveyed her appreciation to the ICAN team for the honour bestowed upon her.

Business

NNPCL To Cut Fuel Import From August

Published

1 day ago

June 9, 2023

The Tide

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) says once the Dangote Refinery starts pumping out refined petroleum products from late July or early August, the NNPCL will cut down on its imports of Premium Motor Spirit, popularly called petrol.
NNPCL is currently the sole importer of petrol into Nigeria, a task which it had shouldered for several years. Other oil marketers stopped importing petrol due to their inability to access the United States dollars at the official rate.
NNPCL also owned 20 per cent stake in the Dangote Refinery. The 650,000 barrels per day crude oil processing refinery was inaugurated on May 22, 2023 by former President Muhammadu Buhari, who described the facility as a game-changer.
Also at the inauguration, the Founder/Chairman, Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, said the facility would put an end to the inflow of toxic substandard petroleum products into Nigeria, adding that the refinery would meet 100 per cent of Nigeria’s fuel needs.
Dangote also stated that the refinery would start delivering refined products to the Nigerian market from late July or Early August this year.
According to the spokesman of NNPCL, Garba-Deen Mohammed, immediately Dangote Refinery begins to push out products in August, it would change the NNPCL fuel imports programme.
He said, “NNPC Limited is bringing in products from outside Nigeria as a matter of necessity, not as a matter of choice. We would have preferred that we produce here, refine here and we sell and provide the energy security that the country needs.
“Because of the circumstances that surround our refineries, we cannot allow the country to be grounded. So we have to buy wherever we can get and sell. So if Dangote products are available, why should we not buy from Dangote?
“There is absolutely no reason. And that is the reason why we are interested in the Dangote Refinery. We are co-owners, shouldn’t we do business with our partners rather than do it with other people?”
Muhammad stated that the NNPCL would be supplying crude oil to the Dangote Refinery based on business agreement between both parties, and that this would be in accordance with the international price of crude.
“NNPC owns 20 per cent of that asset and we have an agreement with Dangote that we will supply the refinery with crude. So as soon as Dangote begins to request for crude to pay for it, NNPC is prepared to supply the crude as a business transaction.
“We have been selling crude to different parts of the world for decades, and it is not whether we will sell it to Dangote, for why won’t we sell to Dangote when we are selling to other refineries and countries?
NNPCL Group Chief Executive Officer, Mele Kyari, recently stated that the supply of 300,000 barrels of crude oil per day by the national oil firm to the Dangote Refinery would start once the facility commenced operations.
to be produced by the Dangote Refinery would not be known at the moment until the refinery released its pricing template.

They expressed hope that the refinery would improve the petroleum products’ supply situation in Nigeria, but noted that the cost of white products would only be determined by the pricing template of the facility.

The Secretary, Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Abuja-Suleja, Mohammed Shuaibu, said, “By the time it starts producing, we would see how implementation is going to be and his template.

“We cannot say much about the refinery until it starts. So let us see the mode of production, how it is going to look like in terms of its pricing template”.

Also speaking, the President, Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria, Billy Gillis-Harry, said the pricing template from the new refinery would guide operators on what would be the cost of refined petroleum products from the facility.