The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) has categorically stated that it does not import inferior fuel and is not responsible for the recent petrol price increases.
In response to calls for Mele Kyari’s resignation over petrol price increases, the state oil firm said the protesters were misinformed about the causes of the fuel price increase.
The NNPC Chief Corporate Communications Officer, Olufemi Soneye, clarified this on Tuesday, November 5, 2024, as he also addressed the fuel quality distributed by the NNPC.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) said civil society organisations stormed the NNPC headquarters in Abuja, protesting the recent fuel price increases.
According to Soneye, the NNPC boss ensured Nigerians bought fuel at N620 per litre over a year ago when the landing cost was above N1,120.
The NNPC image maker also addressed allegations of substandard fuel imports, saying that the national oil firm does not import inferior petroleum products.
The NNPC spokesman said the company is focused on achieving national energy security and will not be distracted by the protests, stating that the company’s commitment is to implement President Bola Tinubu’s energy roadmap for the country.
TimesNow.com.ng reported that Dangote Refinery alerted Nigerians over the import of substandard petroleum products and the lack of laboratory facilities by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) to detect them.
The mega refinery disclosed that international traders allegedly bring these products into the country, which are used daily by Nigerian vehicle owners.
A previous report noted that marketers said the Dangote refinery sells petrol at a higher cost than imported fuel.
The marketers vowed to import products and sell cheaper than Dangote Refinery’s prices.
However, Dangote stated that it set its ex-depot petrol prices at N990 per litre for sales into trucks and N960 for ships, adding that its fuel prices are competitive relative to international market prices.
The refinery statement was disclosed by the Group’s Chief Branding and Communications Officer, Anthony Chiejine, in response to issues raised by the marketers.
The statement partly reads:
Chiejine said that an international trading firm had established an oil depot in Nigeria close to the Dangote Refinery to undercut its high-quality production by filling the market with cheaper and inferior products.
According to Chiejine, the NMDPRA lacks the required laboratory facilities to detect substandard products imported into Nigeria.
TimesNow.com.ng earlier reported that the Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN) disclosed on Monday, November 4, 2024, that the petrol its members intend to import would be cheaper than the current one sold in Nigeria.
PETROAN’s national public relations officer, Joseph Obele, said competition in a deregulated environment must exist.
He disclosed that the association had registered a business unit to import petrol before December.
