DSS Facilitates Peace Agreement Between NNPCL, Marketers
A a peace meeting facilitated by the Director General of the Department of State Services (DSS), Adeola Ajayi, has settled the rift between the Nigerian National Petroleum Limited Company (NNPCL) and oil marketers under the aegis of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN).
The National President of IPMAN, Abubakar Maigandi, confirmed this on Thursday.
The oil marketers have now been granted permission to begin lifting of Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) from NNPCL depot at a lower price.
They will now, also, be issued import and off-taker licenses by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority to import fuel directly or purchase same directly from the Dangote Refinery.
Recall thta IPMAN, on Thursday, had bemoaned the high costs of loading petroleum products from NNPCL.
It noted that, while petrol from the Dangote Petroleum Refinery to NNPC was about N898/litre, the same was sold to it at N1,010/litre in Lagos.
The Association, therefore, vowed to stop operating if the issue is not resolved.
IPMAN also revealed that NNPCL had held up funds of independent marketers for three months.
“Our major challenge now is that independent marketers have an outstanding debt from the NNPC and the company collected products through Dangote at a lower rate, which is not up to N900, but they are telling us now to buy this product from them at the price of N1,010/litre in Lagos; N1,045 in Calabar; N1,050 in Port-Harcourt; and N1,040 in Warri,” Maigandi stated.
Following the new agreement, the oil marketers will be allowed to load products to cover the N15bn owed to them.
“We were invited by the Director of the Department of State Services to resolve the ongoing issue between the association and the NNPCL.
“The meeting was on the non-compliance of selling PMS to IPMAN by Dangote Refinery and the problem we are having with NNPCL in terms of pricing. Based on this, the director of DSS invited us and brokered peace.
“Among what was agreed upon after a meditation process led by our National President Abubakar Maigandi, NNPCL has agreed to make some reductions and allow independent marketers to load out those tickets that amount to N15bn immediately,” the National Publicity Secretary of IPMAN, Chinedu Ukadike stated.
