As the scarcity of petrol persists across the country, marketers of the commodity have denied allegation of product diversion levelled against them by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation.

This is coming as the Pipelines and Products Marketing Company, a subsidiary of the NNPC, announced on Tuesday that it had revoked the licences of three marketers allegedly involved in the diversion of products.

The PPMC said product diversion by independent marketers had contributed to the scarcity being experienced in many cities across the country, as the NNPC warned that, henceforth, dealers found to be guilty would have their Bulk Purchase Agreement revoked.

But the Treasurer, Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Mr. Dibu Aderibigbe, told our correspondent that members of IPMAN were not involved in product diversion.
ADVERTISEMENT

He said the independent marketers must not be blamed for the current fuel scarcity, stressing that up till Tuesday afternoon, the government had yet to pay their subsidy claims despite efforts put in by IPMAN to ensure smooth distribution of petroleum products across the country.

Aderibigbe dared the NNPC to sanction any marketer found wanting, but expressed confidence that no member of the association would be found to be involved in product diversion.

He said, “There is nothing like diversion in as much as you take your product to the station that you booked the product for. We independent marketers are not diverting products. We take products loaded for us to designated stations.

“So, if the NNPC, PPMC or DPR say products are being diverted, then anybody caught should be sanctioned. There is no problem with that.”

Another IPMAN member stated that the NNPC should desist from making allegations that marketers were responsible for the scarcity of petrol due to diversion.

The marketer, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said, “The NNPC knows very well that it cannot meet the whole demand for fuel in Nigeria and even at some of their depots, they sell fuel at high rates that after you transport the product to the destination, you cannot sell at the regulated price and make profit.

“As for diversion, that is not true. People take products to various destinations. The truth is that people prefer destinations where they can sell and make profits without being disturbed by the regulators. Nobody is diverting any product and the NNPC and PPMC know that.”

However, the corporation explained that its warning to the marketers was issued in the face of persistent tightness of supply being experienced in the country despite huge load-outs from the PPMC depots by both major and independent marketers, a situation that it said had been traced to diversion.

It noted that the PPMC revoked the lifting licences or BPAs of three independent marketers for engaging in product diversion and sundry infractions.

“The affected marketers are Funo Alfa, Organizer West Africa and Rich Oil. The sanction is with immediate effect,” it said.

The NNPC added that it was closely monitoring the market alongside its subsidiary, the PPMC, adding that the withdrawal of lifting licences of errant marketers was a continuous exercise.