Confusion At Oil Depots As Marketers Close Shop

Following the removal of subsidy on petrol which was announced by the Federal Government last week, Shipping Position Daily gathered that petroleum tank farms over the weekend decided to stop sale of fuel and adopt a wait-and-see attitude, pending the determination of market factors.
Secretary General of the tank farm owners under the aegis of Depot and Petroleum Marketers Association (DAPMA) Mr. Femi Adewole confirmed to our correspondent over the weekend that the marketers are currently confused and are yet to take a stance on the decision of the Federal Government.
Minister of State for Petroleum, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu had last week announced the new fuel price at N145 per litre.
The DAPMA scribe said that ordinarily, the marketers ought to be happy about this decision because they had over the years clamoured for the removal of subsidy and that government should allow market forces determine the price.
“Marketers are yet to take a decision on the new pump price. I can’t speak now because I still need to sample my people’s opinion, I know they have what they are thinking because we clamoured for it. We do not have an opinion yet, I am just the executive secretary, so until I sample my people’s opinion which I know is positive towards it, but I will rather move round them before I talk”
“We have the PPPRA template and we abide by their instructions” Adewole stated.
Also speaking with Shipping Position Daily, Depot Manager at  Capital Oil Tank Farm along Apapa-Oshodi expressway, Mr. Geoffrey Okorie said that the new pump price announcement has caused serious confusion in the fold of the markets.
He said the announcement by the government jolted the marketers and that currently they are yet to form a decision on the way forward. He said that the independent tank farm owners for now are not distributing fuel.
“Everybody is completely confused on the whole issue, for now we don’t know what to say, everyone of us have been caught unawares”
“Everything is at a standstill right now, nobody is loading PMS, apart from the NNPC product that is being loaded for now, there is total confusion everywhere, nobody knows if they should load the product on the current template or not”, he stressed.
Meanwhile, our correspondents noted petrol stations in most parts of Lagos have adjusted their pumps to the new fuel price of N145 per litre.
This came as the federal government stated that the real cost of petrol in the country was N243.05 per litre.
In Lagos, few stations with the product sold for N145 per litre. While motorists bought with ease in some of the petrol stations, some other stations still witnessed long queues which had resurfaced a few days ago, after initially easing out.
It was also gathered that many petrol stations sold no fuel because they had ran out of stock, according to some of the fuel attendants.
Of the over 53 petrol stations visited last week, only four sold the product, including Forte, Rain Oil and Mobil.
Consequently, the streets of Lagos were virtually empty as only very few vehicles were on the road. A motorist, who didn't want his name in print, said he was at a petrol station in Ikeja where people refused to buy the product, even when there was no queue, saying it was too expensive.
The government in a document obtained from the PPPRA in Abuja, also explained that the decision to undertake the recent increase in the price of petrol was reached after a comprehensive study of the costs of importation and in furtherance of the price modulation framework started in January 2016.
The National Secretary, Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, IPMAN, Alhaji Danladi Garba Pasali, called for a total deregulation of the sector, allowing market forces to determine price.
According to him, this will help ensure efficiency in the sector. Speaking to Vanguard in a telephone interview, he said: "The government should just remove its hand from the oil sector because 80 to 85 per cent of marketers are not getting the product at the amount being regulated.
"So, the best thing to do is to deregulate the system, so that people can compete and bring in product, to reduce prices in the market. What we are saying is that they should open up the industry that will bring investment and ensure an attractive environment where investors could come in and invest.
"It would also ensure that people are attracted into investing and building refineries in the country. But with all of these regulations and other bottlenecks, it does not help the system function to its full capacity. We have been on this issue for a long time and have seen how people manipulate the regulations to exploit the masses and loot the treasury.
"We are saying that subsidy should be removed to bring about a level environment that will be determined by the forces of the market."