Independent oil marketers in Nigeria are making a bold claim: they could potentially sell petrol at a lower price than Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) stations if they could obtain the product directly from the source.
Abubakar Maigandi, the National President of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), emphasized this during an interview.
Maigandi highlighted the main hurdle faced by independent oil marketers: the inability to procure petrol directly from NNPCL depots. He explained that while NNPCL sells petrol to private depot owners at ₦557 per litre, independent marketers end up purchasing it from third parties at ₦630 per litre.
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“This discrepancy,” Maigandi stated, “contributes to why petrol is being sold at around ₦650 per litre or higher by IPMAN members.” He stressed that IPMAN controls 80 percent of the market share and could potentially sell petrol below NNPCL rates if they had direct access to the product.
“We have made our challenges known to the Federal Government,” Maigandi revealed. “They will definitely take action, especially considering the outcry from the masses. If we receive the product directly from NNPCL, the price will be reduced.”
Maigandi further elucidated that purchasing petrol from private depots at ₦630 per litre, coupled with transportation costs and profit margins, leads to higher retail prices.
He emphasized that if given the opportunity, IPMAN could significantly impact fuel pricing across the country due to its extensive retail network covering both urban and rural areas.
The ongoing debate over petrol pricing and distribution between IPMAN and NNPCL underscores the complexities within the Nigerian petroleum industry.
As NNPCL remains the sole importer of petroleum products into the country, the resolution of this issue could have implications for fuel affordability and accessibility nationwide.