Yemisi Izuora
Chairman, Senate Committee on Downstream Mrs Uche Ekwunife, said today that the Senate would engage the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to ensure speedy sales of foreign exchange to marketers.
Ekwunife said this during the oversight function of the committees to some depots in Lagos.
She said that the essence of the oversight function of the committee was to investigate ongoing fuel scarcity in spite of the pronouncement of the NNPC on product availability in the country.
The chairman said that most of the depots visited lamented over inability of marketers to buy foreign exchange to import petroleum product.
According to her, we are concerned about the long queues and fuel scarcity in the country which affects the general public.
“We, the senate committee on downstream sector will ensure CBN is engaged to find lasting solution to ways marketers can assess foreign exchange in bank to fast track importation.
“If marketers are able to assess the forex on time as at when due this would go along way in addressing issues of fuel scarcity in the country,’’ she said.
Ekwunife said that the committee would also discuss with CNB on ways marketers foreign exchange differentials can be paid on time to address ongoing fuel importation challenges.
She, however, lauded Nigerian Independent Petroleum Company (NIPCO) for their support to the national development in ensuring effective and prompt loading of petrol from their gantry to the stations across the country.
The chairman said that “we cannot continue to have scarcity in the country when depot owners have what it takes to discharge products.
“All depots should beef up its loading capacity to reflect on the common people struggling to buy the product in filling stations.
“We must ensure that product gets to the end users and all depots should also build truck park that would contain many truck to avoid being parking on the highway,’’ she said.
Mr Venkataraman Venkatapathy, Managing Director, NIPCO said the company had remained an ally of government in ensuring product availability across the country through its depot operations and branded stations and independent marketer’s outlets who load in the terminal.
He noted that pricing of petroleum products at its depot have always been at the government approved depot rates adding that concerted efforts are also made to ensure that only registered marketers with verifiable outlets load in the company.
Venkatapathy however implored government to look into the area of gas especially in the realm of Compressed Natural Gas as vehicular fuel as such feat will save the nation and the citizenry hiccups always experienced in the importation of liquid fuels .
According to him, it is in pursuance of harnessing the abundant gas resources in the country that the company in a Joint Venture with Nigeria Gas Company (NGC) floated Green Gas Ltd to provide necessary infrastructures that could aid use of gas as vehicular fuel as well as powering of industrial concerns.
According to him, the Joint Venture scheme had resulted in the conversion of over 4,000 vehicles in Benin City alone with seven CNG outlets while the ibafo station in Ogun State has also commenced operation along the line.
The MD stated that the giant stride of Green Gas Ltd. was already manifesting as a revolution not only in Nigeria but in the entire Africa adding that the development will save government lots of forex at a time the nation is witnessing lots of stress in importing petrol.