Nigerian Gov’t Blames Marketers Over Nationwide Petroleum Scarcity

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has blamed the current petroleum scarcity in the country on marketers of the product.

Maikanti Baru, group managing director of the company, said this in a statement by Ndu Ughamadu, NNPC spokesman.

Assuring that the fuel scarcity would fizzle out this week, Baru warned marketers against hoarding, saying any filling station found wanting would lose its entire products to motorists.

He also said part of the problem was the rumours about the purported planned increase in the pump price of petrol.

“But we swiftly swung into action by doubling our supply nationwide. At the time the rumour started, we had about 30-day sufficiency,” he said.

“The normal daily supply to the nation is 700 trucks, equaling about 27-30 million litres per day.”

He added that the corporation had doubled its daily supply of petrol, from daily 700 trucks (about 27 million – 30 million) litres per day supply to 80 million litres since the current hiccup in the supply chain was noticed a few days back.

He assured Nigerians that the NNPC had enough products sufficiency that would last up to 30 days.

Baru urged motorists not to engage in panic buying as the corporation had more than enough products for domestic consumption.

He commended NNPC’s sister agencies, the Department of Petroleum Resources and Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency, for their support in helping NNPC tackle the menace of hoarding by filling stations.