Operators in the petroleum and haulage sector have called the attention of the Federal Government to the damage caused by Petroleum haulage tankers that are currently being constructed to carry 60, 000 liters of petroleum products on Nigerian roads.
Stakeholders have argued that the petroleum trucks which are imported mainly from Brazil and South Korea are not meant to run on Nigerian roads but that many petroleum marketing companies are already requesting for the importation of more of these trucks.
Operators in the petroleum and haulage sector have called the attention of the Federal Government to the damage caused by Petroleum haulage tankers that are currently being constructed to carry 60, 000 liters of petroleum products on Nigerian roads.
Stakeholders have argued that the petroleum trucks which are imported mainly from Brazil and South Korea are not meant to run on Nigerian roads but that many petroleum marketing companies are already requesting for the importation of more of these trucks.
Chairman of the ABC Transport Limited who is also the National Deputy President of the Chattered Institute of Logistics and Transport (CILT) Mr. Frank Nneji recently disclosed to stakeholders at an event in Lagos that there is an increase in the demand by operators for 45, 000 liter trucks in order to maximize profit.
Also speaking with Shipping Position Daily last week, a petroleum marketer, Mr. Olanife Adeoye said that many petroleum marketers including MRS petroleum tank farm, Sanni Brothers and so on, are now having 45, 000 and 60, 000 liter trucks presently running on Lagos roads.
According to him, the trucks are not meant for Nigerian roads, and that they are supposed to be banned by the government. He advised the governments to improve the road structures all over the country as operators are already complaining that they are tearing the roads apart.
“Let government change the structure of the roads in order to be able to accommodate these huge and heavy trucks, most of them are mainly from Brazil, from Korea where they have good road structures, but our roads are not build for such heavy trucks, the maximum capacity for our road is 33,000 liter capacity”
While highlighting the advantages of the trucks however, Olanife said that instead of using two drivers to carry 60,000 liter product their destination, “you use one driver, instead of using two trucks you use one, instead of using almost twenty two tires you use ten”
He said that the cost of transporting the product with 60,000 liters truck will be minimized as well as the payment and other allowances to the drivers, the transportation cost per unit will also be reduced.
“The 45,000 liters capacity trucks are already in use, we even have 60,000 liter capacity presently in use, MRS has it, the Sanni Brothers started it first, I saw more than ten belonging to MRS on Tin Can road last week going to load from MRS tank farm”
“They are not phasing out the 35, 000 capacity because the price of getting the 45,000 capacity is enormous, they are new vehicles, but we still 5,000, 25,000 liter capacity all still in use, no one is disturbing the other”
He stressed that the 65,000 liters is used mainly by big companies that has a lot of contracts to supply petroleum products, and that the truck is meant to reduce the cost surrounding the supply.
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