Abuja fuel queues worsen, supply crisis persists

Oil marketers on Monday attributed the widespread queues for the Premium Motor Spirit, commonly known as gasoline, in and around Abuja to the continuing crisis in the supply of the product.
It was also learned that many tank farms were not distributing products on Monday due to gasoline supply issues.
This led to severe queues at most of the gas stations in Abuja that distributed PMS, as many more were locked up.
The two service stations, Conoil and Total, located in front of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited headquarters in Abuja, had long queues of motorists.
The few gas stations that distributed gasoline on the way to the airport, for example Major Oil, had long queues, as motorists spent hours in front of outlets trying to get the PMS .
Providing an explanation of what led to the massive queues on Monday, the national public relations manager of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Chief Ukadike Chinedu, told our correspondent that the problem in the downstream sector had not been resolved.
He said that many depots are not distributing products to retail outlets because they (depots) are running out of products.
“The downstream supply crisis persists. We raised this concern a few weeks ago and they came out to say they had enough product, but right now we are seeing lineups again due to the challenges, ”Chinedu said.
He added: “Many tank farms or depots do not distribute products. Only a few traders have products to sell to end consumers. The issue of price remains a concern, as some depots still sell above the regulated price.
This came as IPMAN announced the emergence of Debo Ahmed as the new president with effect from December 14, 2021, and assured motorists that he would continue to work hard to manage concerns in the downstream oil sector.
In November, downstream concerns prompted private depots to sell PMS at 159 N / liter instead of the approved rate N148 / liter.
Depot owners explained at the time that the increase in depot costs was due to the fact that the NNPC had not yet reinstated the naira-denominated bills for excess coastal movement capacity using the window rate. import and export, as agreed by stakeholders.
Queues in Abuja caused black traders to reappear on major highways on Monday, as they sold gasoline in jerry cans to motorists and other PMS users.
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