The fuel scarcity situation according to an oil marketer would linger till the early part of next week.
Although the official price of petroleum in Nigeria is still fixed at N165 per litre, Nigerians are currently paying more as fuel scarcity hit many cities in the country.
The development arose after the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) began a new price regime over the weekend as many of them maintained that selling at the official price is tantamount to running at a loss.
Confirming this in a statement by its Lagos State Depot (LSD) Secretary, Akeem Balogun, the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) said, “With the current price, there is no way we can sell less than N180 per litre.
“Members are hereby advised to sell at a sustainable price within their environment. Just make sure that the price is on your pump.”
The development on Monday, June 20, 2022, led to fuel scarcity in Lagos as commuters were left stranded across the state due to the non-availability of commercial vehicles.
Many independent fuel stations were shut, while the few that opened for business had long queues of commercial drivers, motorists, motorcyclists, and jerrycan-carrying individuals who need to power their machines with petrol.
The long queues at fuel stations caused heavy traffic on Ikorodu Road, Ikoyi, Ikeja, Airport Road, Oshodi, Ejigbo, Egbeda, Ikotun, and Igando as many resorted to trekking to their destinations.
Fuel scarcity was also experienced in other cities like Abuja, Akure, Ado-Ekiti, Abeokuta, Jos, and many other cities across the country.
In addition to the reason given by IPMAN, a source in the Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN), who spoke to TheNation attributed the scarcity to a dislocation in the supply chain.
The anonymous source said, when there is a disruption in the supply chain, it “takes an average of almost two weeks to get it back to normal.”
The source added that the situation would linger till the early part of next week because the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPC) restored supply late on Monday.
