Marketers of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) otherwise called petrol yesterday expressed concerns over supply shortage from Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) as fuel queue surfaced in Abuja.

Stations in some parts of the city were shut down as motorists spent longer time to refill their tanks to avoid petrol scarcity challenges. NNPC has remained the sole importer of PMS in the face of unfair competition despite the supposed deregulation of the downstream segment of the industry.

The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) said that adequate supply of products to its members is being hampered. A top member of the association, Abubakar Shettima, said members have raised concerns over inadequate supply from NNPC, adding that the situation would be clearer today.

The national president of the Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN), Dr. Billy Gillis-Harry said there was supply glitch. He however added that the glitch is not expected to lead to scarcity because his members have fuel in their stations but motorists do not have the fund to buy due to the current economic hardship.

Chief Corporate Communications Officer, NNPC Ltd, Olufemi Soneye, said there is no supply issue, adding however that there was brief distribution issues.

We are pleased to confirm that there are no supply issues, and our products remain readily available. The recent tightness experienced in certain areas was due to a brief distribution issue in Lagos, which has since been resolved, he said. (The Guardian)