The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited has reached an agreement with the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria to reduce the cost of Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) at its depots.
This comes after IPMAN threatened to stop operations due to the high price of loading petroleum products.
The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority also promised to issue import and off-taker licenses to independent marketers, allowing them to either import fuel directly or purchase products from the Dangote Refinery. This aligns with the government’s plan to deregulate the oil sector fully.
IPMAN had earlier complained that while NNPCL bought petrol from Dangote Refinery at about N898 per litre, independent marketers were being charged higher prices—N1,010 per litre in Lagos and even more in other cities.
The association’s national president, Abubakar Maigandi, expressed frustration during a live interview, saying, “Our major challenge now is that NNPCL bought petrol at a lower price from Dangote but is asking us to pay much more, which is unfair.”
In response, the Director General of the Department of State Services, Adeola Ajayi, facilitated a peace meeting between NNPCL and IPMAN.
Following the meeting, NNPCL agreed to allow independent marketers to load petrol at a reduced price and cover the N15 billion owed to them. IPMAN’s National Publicity Secretary, Chinedu Ukadike, shared the outcome: “NNPCL has agreed to make some reductions and allow independent marketers to load products that amount to N15bn immediately.”
The NMDPRA also committed to granting import licenses to IPMAN as part of the ongoing efforts to fully deregulate the oil sector.
However, when contacted, NMDPRA’s spokesperson, George Ene-Ita, claimed he was not aware of the meeting or any license approval.
Additionally, the NMDPRA has agreed to pay N10 billion in outstanding payments under the Petroleum Equalisation Fund to oil marketers.
