10,000 Filling Stations to Shut Down as Dangote Ships 79 Million Litres of Petrol to Lagos
- Petroleum products marketers have said about 10,000 filling stations are about to shut down due to low petrol consumption
- Available data from the NMDPRC shows that petrol consumption declined by 92%, down from 60 million litres in May 2023 to 4.5 million in August 2024
- The NMDPRA data also indicates that only 16 out of the 36 states in Nigeria got petrol from the NNPC
Legit.ng’s Pascal Oparada has reported on tech, energy, stocks, investment and the economy for over a decade.
As fuel consumption dips nationwide due to high prices, oil marketers have expressed worry over massive losses, and about 10,000 oil dealers are about to close their shops.
Information from the Nigeran Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) shows that fuel consumption declined to 4.5 million litres daily in August 2024 from 60 million litres in May last year, representing a 92% drop.
Source: UGC
IPMAN confirms reduction in petrol consumption
The NMDPRA data also shows that only 16 out of the 36 states in Nigeria got petrol from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC), leading to shortages.
Legit.ng reported that President Bola Tinubu removed the fuel subsidy in May 2023, leading to a 488% surge in petrol prices.
The commodity’s price soared from N175 per litre to over N1,000 as of October 2024.
The ongoing price hikes in petroleum products have affected the Nigerian economy, leading to high transport fares and a 32.70% inflation rate, which has caused hardship for Nigerians.
The leadership of the Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN) disclosed that the decline in petrol consumption caused the association members huge losses, saying that about 10,000 of them were close to shutting down.
About one million workers lose jobs
Punch reports that PETROAN national public relations officer Joseph Obele said that the cost of a tuck of PMS rose from N7 million to N47 million in 16 months
According to the report, Obele claimed that the marketers had about one million staff who were about to lose their jobs.
Abubakar Maigandi, president of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), also confirmed that fuel consumption has dipped, saying IPMAN members were also affected.
The leadership of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) said marketers' inability to purchase products has led to job losses for truck drivers and filling station workers nationwide.
Obele said the hike in fuel price had also blocked the cross-border racketeering of the product.
Dangote Refinery ship petrol to Lagos
The development comes as the Dangote Petroleum Refinery recorded its first sea petrol dispatch, approximately 500,000 barrels.
The refinery in Ibeju Lekki, Lagos, recorded the milestone one month after it began using trucks to supply petrol.
Bloomberg reports that the petrol was shipped through the Sabaek this week.
Dangote Refinery is crucial in helping Nigeria reduce its reliance on petrol imports from Europe. ThisDay reports that the heart of Dangote refinery operations is the Residue Fluid Catalytic Cracker (RFCC) unit—a critical component for converting crude into high-value fuels such as gasoline—which continues to increase output.
Once fully operational, the $20 billion 650,000-barrel-per-day refinery facility is expected to redefine Nigeria’s fuel landscape.
Dangote refinery begins direct petrol sale to marketers
Legit.ng earlier reported that the Dangote Petroleum Refinery has already started supplying petrol to some oil marketers without resorting to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC).
The development comes as marketers strengthen their move to purchase the product directly from the facility. While others imported petrol, reports say over 123 million litres will hit the market in the coming weeks.
Four vessels loaded with PMS arrived at the Lagos and Calabar ports between Friday, October 18 and Sunday, October 20, 2024.
Proofreading by James, Ojo Adakole, journalist and copy editor at Legit.ng.
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Source: Legit.ng
