By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
Petroleum marketers in the country say there is no going back in their plan to import fuel from outside the country to crash the price of the product.
The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria and the Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria last week insisted on fuel importation after accusing the Dangote refinery of selling fuel to Nigerians at an exorbitant price.
The marketers are now awaiting approvals from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) to facilitate these imports, which they argue would offer relief to consumers facing financial strain following the removal of fuel subsidies.
To proceed with the imports, the marketers have requested access to foreign exchange from the CBN and regulatory permits from NMDPRA to ensure compliance with quality and standards for the fuel they plan to bring into the country.
However, the NMDPRA has denied claims that it has granted IPMAN and PETROAN permission to import petrol as associations. According to an NMDPRA official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, only individual marketers—not associations—can apply for import licenses. The source emphasized that individual applications are mandated by law.
“The truth of the matter is that they can’t apply for petrol import license as a body or association. Individual marketers have to apply by themselves before they can be granted that license. They have to apply by themselves. We are not going to give the permit jointly so they can’t apply as an association,” the source said.
Responding to the development, PETROAN’s National Public Relations Officer, Dr. Joseph Obele, disclosed that the association had applied for an import license about a month ago through its newly established trading wing. He described Dangote as an “aggressive competitor” with intentions to dominate the market.
“You should know that Dangote is just out to close all the doors and windows so that no person enters the market. He is determined to ensure that nobody enters the market as a competitor. We assure Nigerians that as soon as the regulatory agency approves our authority to import, this price of PMS that is causing pain to Nigerians right now will crash to the barest minimum,” Obele stated.
Dr. Obele further argued that the product PETROAN aims to import would be of high quality, potentially surpassing the standards of the Dangote refinery. He urged Nigerians to support efforts to dismantle market monopolies.
“We call on Nigerians to support the call for dismantling monopolies so that we can liberate the market; otherwise, we will remain in the trap we are. We are trapped at the moment; we are trapped with exploitation, and the only way out of the trap is to dismantle every dimension of monopoly and we are calling on Nigerians to support us,” he said.