Fuel supply to the 36 states by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has been doubled in the last few days as part of the effort to restore normalcy to the petrol supply and distribution across the country.
Group Managing Director of the Corporation, Dr. Maikanti Baru said in Abuja that the organization has already cleared fuel queues in Abuja and Lagos with the commitment to increase truck-outs to other states.
Baru, speaking during unscheduled visits to some filling stations in Abuja at the weekend, said NNPC had stepped up the number of truck-outs to 1,733 “as a minimum and we have sustained this for a week and there will be more than enough products for motorists in the weeks ahead.”
“As far as truck out is concerned, we have more than doubled the number of trucks that are going out into the country,” spokesman for NNPC, Mr. Ndu Ughamadu quoted Baru as saying.
“Yesterday, we loaded and distributed products from coastal and strategic inland depots like Jos. We loaded 1,733 trucks yesterday and the actual normal number of trucks we required to keep the country wet is about 700 but we have been doing 800 to 850 trucks before the petrol scarcity.”
The NNPC helmsman said the Corporation would remain focused at ensuring that all the other state capitals are wet with petrol by today.
Dr. Baru said that the petrol scarcity was self-inflicted following the sharp practices of some unscrupulous marketers who took to hoarding and diversion of the product.
According to him, “We have maintained our position that this scarcity is self-inflicted by marketers. The NNPC has more than 30 day sufficiency of supply of petroleum products, especially PMS and at the current consumption rate of about 27 to 28million litres per day, we should be very comfortable until the end of January 2018 even if we don’t import a drop of petrol into this country.”
He urged the marketers to listen to the voice of reason to avoid the long arm of the law catching up with them, adding that the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) have been mandated to invoke the law against any defaulting marketers.
During Friday’s monitoring of petrol sale in Abuja, Baru handed over two motorists who were caught at the NNPC Super Mega Station, Kubwa, with 30 jerry cans in their car to the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) for prosecution.
