Reps Wades Into Fuel Importation Controversy

The lingering face-off over the recent fuel importation approval for the second and third quarter of 2010 has attracted the attention of the House of Representatives; specifically its committee on public petitions which has in turn summoned the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA).
The committee is interested in knowing the criteria which PPPRA used in allotting quota for the companies which got the approvals.
Giving an insight into the development last week, Chairman of the committee, Hon CID Maduabum disclosed that the committee has invited PPPRA’s Executive Secretary, Mr. Abiodun Ibikunle and other directors of the agency to a meeting at the National Assembly.
He equally gave an insight into he rationale behind the invitation saying specifically that the committee is interested in knowing how PPPRA gave fuel importation contracts to companies without tangible or any investments in the downstream sub-sector of the oil and gas industry when some indigenous companies which are taking the risk to secure loans at high interest rate from banks to finance construction of jetty are sidelined or given paltry allocations.
Our correspondent confirmed that the House took the decision to look into the allegations following a petition that was written by the Managing Director of Capital Oil and Gas Industries Limited, Mr. Ifeanyi Ubah. Ubah had in the petition accused PPPRA of marginalisation of some marketers in the allocation of petroleum import approvals.
Uba also demanded that PPPRA should make available to the public details of beneficiaries of its controversial import approvals for the period.
The petition of Ubah, dated July 16, 2010 and which was made available to our correspondent, pointedly accused PPPPRA of deliberate bias. Itb reads inn part: "We have observed with dismay the Agency’s manipulation and non-transparency in the administration of the newly introduced Sovereign Debt Instrument, (SDI). These manipulations and lack of transparency are largely underscored by the non-compliance with due process, the disregard of and discrimination against us in the granting of approvals and allocations to portfolio marketers in the importation of petroleum products, which became rampant in the second and third quarters of 2010.
“It is indeed sad to note that having borrowed and invested billions of naira in a bid to create employment, create multiplier effect and grow local capacity in the Nigerian economy by constructing tank farm, filling stations, acquisition of tanker-trucks, ships and jetties, the PPPRA, under its current leadership, instead of supporting us, has misguided the Federal Government of Nigeria through its continuous lopsided petroleum products import approval to portfolio and non-core investors who do not have interest in creating employment opportunities, growing local capacities and improving the local oil and gas sector thereby seriously undermining our efforts to grow the Nigerian economy and support government policies.
“For instance, in the second and third quarters of 2010, some companies were allocated petroleum products import permit above their requests and installed capacities, some got allocations below their requests and installed capacities while others including Capital Oil and Gas Industries Limited with huge structure and investment got only 15, 000 metric tonnes.
“In the foregoing and in the interest of fair play and transparency, we demand from PPPRA a publication of the full list of companies that got petroleum products imports approval in the second and third quarters of 2010 along with their installed capacities, quantities applied for, quantities approved by PPPRA, dates of importation, port/depot of discharge, vessels name, quantities imported, Naval/DPR clearances of such vessels, countries of origin as well as the names of the promoters of such companies,” he stated.