THE Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) said Dangote Refinery’s plan to start petrol distribution to marketers free of charge across the country would make the product cheaper.
The IPMAN’s National Publicity Secretary, Chinedu Ukadike, welcomed the plan on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily programme on Friday, June 20.
He said Dangote Refinery had seen a problem in the sector and had decided to address it.
“If you look at the Dangote’s statement, it is a strong policy statement. If you read down that statement, you will understand that he foresaw a lot of problems in the oil and gas industry and also decided to tackle them.
“It is something that we welcome with a lot of cheers because it is going to bring fuel cheaper to our doorpost,” Ukadike said.
He added that the Dangote Refinery’s plan would relieve marketers of unnecessary costs.
“Our pipelines have gone for years, nobody is talking about the pipelines wired all over the country from all 21 depots. Products are not being moved. We are suffering the brunt of bringing these products from the seashores of the country, where DAPMAN (Depot and Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria) members have their tank farms.
“But if you look at Dangote’s statement, you will see that a heavy load has been lifted out of the independent marketers,” the IPMAN secretary said.
The ICIR reported that Dangote Refinery on Sunday, June 15, announced the free distribution of petrol and diesel to marketers, dealers, and other large users across the country.
The plan is to commence on August 15, even as the refinery said it had procured 4,000 brand-new compressed natural gas (CNG)-powered tankers for the take-off.
The IPMAN position, however, differed from earlier concerns by the Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN).
The PETROAN had expressed worry that the Dangote Refinery’s plan would disrupt the operations in the oil and gas value chain.
It said the Dangote Refinery plan would go against earlier recommendations by stakeholders within the sub-sector for refiners to be allowed to refine, storage facilities owners to store for adequate energy security, marketers to market, and for retail outlets to sell the products.
However, IPMAN disagreed with the position, insisting that as a refinery, Dangote had the right to find a better way to get his products to the marketers.