Financial Energy Review
The Minister of State for petroleum Resources , Timipre Sylvia has said the diversion and smuggling of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) known as Petrol outside the country will not stop untill the product is fully deregulated adding that the current official price of Petrol stands at N184.00 per litre.
According to him that is what the Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) is selling at its various outlet nationwide.
Sylva pointed out that the current petrol queues across Nigeria is going to ease in a matter of days as NNPCL has enough supplies of Petrol for the country.
This he said is because the Federal Government has taken bold actions to order massive distribution of products across the country, and reassured that with the current steps all hiccups leading to the current situation is being addressed.
Sylva, who was in lagos Friday on the directive of President Muhammdu Buhari, to assess the situation of things with regard to distribution and adherence to price regulation told journalists after his tour of selected petroleum dispensing outlets that an interministerial intervention initiated by the Federal Government has set out to ensure proper management of petrol distribution across the country.
“He situation is pleasant because I observed availability of products in the state, fuelmis everywhere both in Lagos and Abuja. I visited many stations in Ikeja and the mainland and from every indications there are products everywhere and I want to assure you that the queues will disappear in a matter of days”, he said.
The Minister said the situation which we witness in Lagos has been achieved in 15 states across the country, adding that the President has ordered that queues must be cleared immediately.
On arbitrary Price Hike by some marketers, he said he has directed the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, NMDPRA, to upscale its regulatory activities to ensure marketers abide by current price regime. He said, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, retail outlets are selling At N184 per liter and over 900 outlets operated by the Company is selling at that price and that is the official price everybody is expected to sell, but admitted there are sharp practices still ongoing.
Explaining how the situation degenerated Into the crises point, Sylva said Government did not see it coming, saying that sabotage played key role in the sector as those who did not mean well for the country took advantage of the upcoming elections to create panic by engaging in market disruptions .
The Minister however, pointed out that other factors like, insecurity, foreign exchange scarcity, lack of currency availability further compounded the situation.
He said however, that the inter ministerial body inaugurated by the President is not working in synergy to put in check all seeming challenges and block all potholes.
