Connect with us

Business

NNPC hands off kerosene import amidst scarcity

Published

on

Nigeria spent $13.8bn on fuel importation in 2016 --NBS

Amidst kerosene scarcity in parts of Nigeria, it has been confirmed that the NNPC had since October 2016 stopped all direct involvements in importing the products into Nigeria.

The corporation was said to have done this to enable it pay more attention to having PMS (petrol) available to avoid possible scarcity during the 2016 Yuletide, in line with a Presidency directive.

Kerosene, which serves dual purpose for domestic and industrial uses, especially, as aviation fuel has as a result maintained a steady rise in price with a litre, which should sell for N150, currently going for between N250 to N300, depending on the location.

The situation is not helped by major marketers complaining of running unsettled bank loan of about $1.8 billion in 2016 alone, making it impossible for them to change the situation.

However, the NNPC Corporate Affairs manager, Ndu Ughamadu, said kerosene is not in the exclusive list of products for his corporation.

Read also: CBN goes sober, begs BDCs over foreign exchange

According to him, with government removing all restrictions on importation of petroleum products, marketers have the freedom to fill up any shortfall in supply at anytime.

But another source said failure of the refineries in Nigeria to produce kerosene has worsened the situation over the past five years.

Even members of the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) have expressed shock that they could not lift kerosene from any of the major depots and were not given any reason for the situation, nor told when the situation would improve.

NUPENG national chairman, Comrade Rotimi Benjamin, lamented the hardship that the situation has caused tanker owners and drivers, who specialise on the product.

He described as a shame, the fact that government’s promises to dedicate some units of three of its refineries for production of kerosene had not yielded any result.

RipplesNigeria ….without borders, without fears

Join the conversation

Opinions

Support Ripples Nigeria, hold up solutions journalism

Balanced, fearless journalism driven by data comes at huge financial costs.

As a media platform, we hold leadership accountable and will not trade the right to press freedom and free speech for a piece of cake.

If you like what we do, and are ready to uphold solutions journalism, kindly donate to the Ripples Nigeria cause.

Your support would help to ensure that citizens and institutions continue to have free access to credible and reliable information for societal development.

Donate Now

Click to comment

0 Comments

  1. JOHNSON PETER

    January 11, 2017 at 3:18 pm

    All these problems lie in the fact that the government has failed to make our refineries work. It’s better we don’t have refineries than saying we have four refineries where one of it can boast of performing.

    • Joy Madu

      January 11, 2017 at 5:36 pm

      We have no refineries as far as I am concern in Nigeria. This is a failed country.

  2. Margret Dickson

    January 11, 2017 at 5:13 pm

    Buhari’ government is evil and wicked. We are knowing nothing but hardship in this country. Buying food stuffs is expensive, cooking the foodstuffs now is in fact more expensive. Buhari wants us to diebof hunger so him and his relations can inherit Nigeria?

    • yanju omotodun

      January 11, 2017 at 5:24 pm

      Hmmmmmmmm. How can buhari and his family inherit Nigeria? Is buhari the cause of everything, we should learn how to appreciate this man.

  3. Animashaun Ayodeji

    January 11, 2017 at 5:15 pm

    We need to stop lamenting and start having hope that things will definitely get better in this country. If we lament from now till December, things will not change, we have to start looking at the positive sides of all negativity.

    • Roland Uchendu Pele

      January 11, 2017 at 5:27 pm

      Lamenting has never helped anybody. That’s the truth. Really, we’d just stay silent and see things fall apart!

  4. seyi jelili

    January 11, 2017 at 5:27 pm

    Let’s go back to olden days where we use firewoods to cook. It’s not a must we use kerosene except for the aviation industry.

    • chichi emerue

      January 11, 2017 at 5:35 pm

      So you can be stupid enough to say we should go back to firewood . Am sure people like you still live in archaic world.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

6 + 4 =