*The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited has reassured Nigerians that it has sufficient stock of petroleum products for distribution nationwide, and there is no need for panic buying

Isola Moses | ConsumerConnect

Amid the continued fuel scarcity, especially in major cities across the West African country, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, has  reassured Nigerian consumers that it has sufficient stock of petroleum products for distribution nationwide.

ConsumerConnect reports the national oil firm restated that it has over 1.7billion litres of PMS, also known as petrol, both on marine and on the land, and does not have any plan to increase the current price of PMS in the market.

Malam Mele Kyari, Group Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer (GMD/CEO) of NNPC Limited, gave the assurance  Wednesday, March 2, 2022, while addressing editors in a media briefing with Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN), Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria (DAPPMAN) and Nigeria  Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG),  at the NNPC Towers, in Abuja, FCT.

Kyari, however, regretted that the current fuel queues at several filling stations were as a  result of panic buying by consumers.

The NNPC GMD/CEO, therefore, urged Nigerians to desist from panic buying and buy what they need per day.

The NNPC is working assiduously with partners to ensure the product reaches every part of the country, said he.

Kyari also stated: “NNPC is further intensifying efforts to resolve distribution hitches being experienced in some parts of the country due to logistics issues, we have   engaged depot operators to load product round the clock to accelerate the restoration of normal distribution.

“We have capacity now to load from all depots, we are currently running 24 hours loading from all our depots and we believe this will close the gap created by panic buying. We hope this will bring normalcy to the system soon.”

The Company, he said, has engaged the services of government security agencies to ensure that all products loaded get to the right destination and affirmed that sanction will be meted to any operator selling above the stipulated pump prize.

“We sincerely apologise to our people and urge Nigerians to continue to be patient as we strive to return the situation to normalcy,” Kyari said.

According to him, as the supplier of last resort, NNPC has continued to sustain adequate petroleum products supply and distribution to the nation despite challenges associated with the unending waves of pipeline vandalism, product theft and cross-border smuggling of PMS.

“In line with the existing laws of the land, NNPC Limited is deeply committed to ensuring energy security for the country,” he said.