Fuel: Marketers urge NNPC to increase allocation to Imo

The Chairman, Imo State branch of Association Petroleum Marketers, Chief Christopher Amadi, has called on the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to allocate more petrol products under its `special petroleum intervention quota’ to the state.

Chief Amadi, made the call in an interview with newsmen in Owerri on Monday.

He also stated low allocation being received by the State is equally given to other south-eastern states of Abia, Enugu, Ebonyi and Anambra, stressing that the low allocation had compounded petrol scarcity in the zone.

“While other states receive more than 10 million litres under the NNPC petrol intervention, no state in the south-east gets above one to two million litres, and this low allocation is the reason why petrol scarcity in the area seem different’’ Amadi noted.

He said, “if NNPC increases quantity of petrol to Imo, and other states in the south-east, marketers will sell at government control price.’’

Amadi appealed to the governors of south-east to assist petroleum marketers and look into the low allocation of petrol allocated to states in the zone.
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Most filling stations in Imo sell a litre of petrol at between N130 and N150 as against the officials pump price of N86.50.

Amadi further said that marketers are experiencing difficulties in sourcing products, “we only source products from private tank farms in Lagos, Calabar, and Port Harcourt at relatively high prices’’.

The association Chairman added that due to far distance and relatively high rate of transporting the products, marketers cannot afford to sell at the approved price of N86.50 per litre, saying “marketers in Imo are shylock minded as some people feel.’’

He therefore, called on the federal government to step up effort in reactivating all the nation’s refineries, noting “this present situation whereby Nigerians almost depend on private tank farm for the supply of petroleum products is bad.

“I also appeal to NNPC to reactivate the NNPC depots in Aba, Enugu, and Makurdi, as well as construct a depot to serve Imo state. Population of Imo state alone has doubled what it was when NNPC Aba depot was constructed to serve the old.”