Gerard Izuora
There are assurances that motorists in Lagos and Ogun state would begin to see stability in distribution of petrol following Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, IPMAN confirmation that supply has reached major products holding facilities in Lagos state.
The IPMAN confirmed that the Ejigbo Satellite and Mosimi depots which are critical facilities that ensures effective products distribution in the south west have been fully supplied with petrol and promised that the current ravaging fuel scarcity hitting Lagos and Ogun state will end a few days time.
The Association said that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, has fulfilled its promise of supplying the depots with products.
Confirming this in a statement Chairman Lagos state chapter of the IPMAN, Alhaji Alanamu Balogun said before the fuel crisis, the NNPC was supplying his members only six trucks daily, but since about five days now, the corporation has increased the supply to 80 trucks per day and promised to increase the supply.
He said his members and NNPC staff are now working 24 hours daily to ensure that fuel circulates all over Lagos and Ogun State regularly.
It would be recalled that about three weeks ago, IPMAN threatened to withdraw its services on December 11 and shutdown all its members’ over 1000 fuel stations in Lagos and Ogun States, accusing the NNPC of non-supply of fuel to members and diverting the commodity to DAPMAN who sold a liter of fuel to them at the rate of N141 instead of N133.24k.
However the NNPC management appealed to IPMAN to suspend the action and fixed a meeting between its staff and the IPMAN for December 14 which was held in Abuja.
The NNPC promised to rectify the situation, hence all the NNPC depots in Ejigbo, Mosimi Sagamu and Ibadan had been stocked with fuel in order to make it abundant to motorists and members of the public.
Balogun said the NNPC has also repaired all the existing facilities at Ejigbo satellite depot to enhance fuel supply to the public, assuring that the fuel scarcity in Lagos and Ogun state will end within the next few days.
He advised members of the public to stop panic buying of fuel, warning them against storing petroleum products in their homes which could cause fire disaster.
The NNPC has promised to repair all its facilities in Ilorin, Ibadan and Ore depots to ensure regular fuel supply nationwide.