According to Vanguard, The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) has noted that the complete deregulation of petrol pricing, alongside the withdrawal of NNPC Limited as the sole off-taker of petrol from the Dangote Refinery, grants marketers the freedom to source products from various suppliers, including imports.
This development comes after an expert pointed out that NNPC Limited does not engage with associations like IPMAN, but rather with companies that have applied and paid for their petroleum products.
IPMAN’s remarks follow the recent decision by NNPC to increase the pump price of petrol by 15 per cent, setting the price at N998 per liter in Lagos and N1,030 per liter in Abuja.
Chief Chinedu Ukadike, the Public Relations Officer for IPMAN, shared his thoughts with Vanguard, stating that marketers would seek products from sources where prices are more favorable, enhancing their competitiveness. He emphasized the lack of transparency in the current petrol pricing environment, where marketers are often uninformed about decisions made prior to their implementation.
“The happening has been shrouded in secrecy but with time everything will come out because full deregulation has come into play. Marketers can now import and so let’s see what they will do. Then we will know whether we will go with Dangote or elsewhere where the price is better,” he said.
Earlier, IPMAN President Alhaji Abubakar Maigandi Shettima demanded a refund of N15 billion from NNPC Limited for petrol orders that independent marketers had placed but were not fulfilled. In an interview with Channels TV, Shettima stated that if NNPC’s current pricing exceeds that of Dangote Refinery, the national oil company must refund the payments made by independent marketers. He criticized NNPC for requesting additional payments from marketers without supplying the product for which they had already paid.
However, an anonymous expert countered Shettima’s claims, asserting that NNPC does not conduct business with oil marketers, including IPMAN. The expert explained, “NNPC does not have a business relationship with IPMAN because the association did not fill a form and paid to lift petrol from the company. Rather, the NNPC is dealing with many companies.”
SOURCE: News Hub Creator