Seven vessels discharge petroleum products in Lagos
The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) is insisting on the creation of ‘right conditions’ by Dangote Refinery for its members to do business with it.
President of the Dangote Group,Alhaji Aliko Dangote said on Tuesday that his refinery currently has over 500 million litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) available for sale to end fuel importation.
Members of IPMAN are not convinced that the management of the refinery has done enough to carry stakeholders along in its fuel supply strategy.
According to IPMAN’s National Assistant Secretary, Yakubu Suleiman, Dangote Refinery has to make things easy for retailers to patronise it.
Suleiman spoke yesterday on Arise Television’s Morning Show programme amid report of the fresh arrival at the Lagos Ports of seven vessels to berth diesel, crude oils bulk urea, petrol and aviation fuel.
“As IPMAN, Dangote was supposed to have invited us for engagements—not just IPMAN, but all stakeholders, including MOMAN and DAPMAN. Unfortunately, until this moment, there has been no engagement,” Suleiman said.
“It’s only IPMAN that has tried to engage him. We went to Dangote about three to four times seeking a meeting to discuss synergy between IPMAN and Dangote, but all to no avail. Most times, he tells us he will get back to us.
“Like every Nigerian, IPMAN is happy for Dangote and his refinery, which is very strategic to the country.
“IPMAN, as a stakeholder in the industry, is very happy to work with Dangote and buy products from him, but the conditions must be right. Examples include the price he is offloading at and the ease of loading.”
He said the price per litre of petrol at Dangote Refinery and additional charges are not making the product competitive in the market with imported fuel.
“If Dangote has a product selling for N1,000, let’s assume, and there’s another place selling for N900, we can’t just say, for the sake of our relationship with Dangote, that we’ll instruct our members to buy there. We must go where the price is lower, where we’ll get profit,” he said.
“Crude prices are coming down internationally, but Dangote’s rate was N995 per litre, and you have to arrange for your own cargo and loading. With additional costs for transport and depot fees, how can we sell it at the final outlet?“
He asked the Dangote Refinery management to engage with IPMAN, MOMAN, and DAPMAN “so that we can sit down and serve Nigerians.”
He said: “If Dangote sold directly to IPMAN at a fair price, fuel costs would have come down in Nigeria by now.
“We’d go straight to his refinery, pay N995 or N900, and transport it directly to our filling stations. I challenge you—if Dangote did this, you would see prices drop at our retail stations within days.”
Dangote to sell petrol directly to marketers soon
In a separate interview yesterday,IPMAN’s National President, Alhaji Abubakar Maigandi, told The Nation that his association heard recently from Dangote Refinery that it would soon start selling directly to retailers.
“Up till now we are buying products through NNPCL and NNPCL will tell us to go there and load,” Maigandi said by phone.
“We are discussing they should allow us to start taking the product direct so that we can share to our members. He (Dangote) said he will do it. We wrote him a letter and even sat with his management.
“They have responded, that was when the DSS intervened, when they said they would allow us to buy directly.
