*Directs members to sell at N180/litre

The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) on Monday directed its members to sell fuel at N180 per litre insisting that the N165 per litre rate is no longer possible and sustainable.

The Chairman of IPMAN, Lagos Satellite Depot, Mr. Akin Akinrinade, said that in the past six months, no fuel had been lifted at the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation’s (NNPC) Satellite depots at Ejigbo, adding that this has forced independent marketers to rely on private depots, who had since increased their ex-depot price making it impossible for them to sell fuel at N165 per litre.

Akinrinade said that the current scarcity was because members have not been able to replenish their stocks because of current cost of loading PMS from private depots.

He said at a press briefing, “Our members are registered to load with PPMC, but since December last year, not a litre has been lifted at the NNPC’s Satellite depots in Ejigbo.

“We have tickets that have been paid for amounting to over a billion naira as far back as October last year and as we speak, these tickets have not been loaded meaning that PPMC is holding on to our money.

“These are funds we are supposed to use to run our businesses. We are businessmen, we take bank loans and now we are paying for money that we are not using.

“As I am talking to you today, no private depot is selling below N162 per litre ex depot. We still need to add cost of transportation which is between N6 to N8 depending on the distance within Lagos and if it is outside Lagos, it is more than that and if you add the transportation cost to N162, it is already N170 and do not forget that this product is regulated by the federal government.

“We have not even added other charges at the depots and the running cost of our stations. 

“Our members can no longer sell at N165 and in fact, there is no reasonable businessman that can sell below N180 per litre.”

In another press briefing at IPMAN House Ejigbo, the Secretary, Akeem Balogun directed members to sell at N180 per litre.

Balogun said, “the Chairman and executives in conjunction with some senior members of our unit, organised a press conference today 20th June 2022, at IPMAN HOUSE Ejigbo Lagos, where we explained our predicament with the current price of PMS at private depot.

“We explained that with the current price, there is no way we can sell less than N180 per litre. 

“On this note, members are hereby advised to sell at a sustainable price within their environment. 

“Just make sure that the price is on your pump. Kindly contact the Secretariat should you have any authority challenging your operations”.