The Petroleum Products Retail Outlet Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN) has ordered members to repudiate any price attraction arising from imported petroleum products as it negates the policy of local content and poses pressure on foreign exchange.
National president of the association, Billy Gillis-Harry, who spoke to LEADERSHIP, that the association has inaugurated the Lagos State Executive Council of PETROAN in preparation for the task ahead, with the goal of ensuring adulteration, illegal adjustment of metering systems, victimisation of retail outlets owners by agencies, and hoarding of petroleum products are eradicated.
Gillis-Harry said, the association has already entered into agreement with Dangote and once the 180 days supply provision is sustained, there will be assurances of stability in prices and the association monitors pricing movements and as such, Dangote is not expected to announce a hike without consultation.
He said, PETROAN has sealed a partnership with DANGOTE/MRS for greater and efficient petroleum distribution nationwide.
By this agreement reached, Nigerians will henceforth get the best value for money paid for the purchase of PMS, and the era of price disparity will be a thing of the past, even as consideration for the cost of transportation is inclusive in the scheme.
Gillis-Harry, described the agreement as a show of love from Dangote Refinery, in conjunction with PETROAN, to Nigerians and encouraged the public to be optimistic that better days are ahead. The association called for declaration of a state of emergency on the country’s rail and other transport networks as part of moves to crash the price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS).
The PETROAN president said, an efficient train service and good roads will lead to a reduction in the cost of transporting petroleum products. Gills-Harry said this, while discussing issues around the country’s downstream petroleum sector.
He said, PETROAN has ensured the government declared a state of emergency on the refining capacity of Nigeria, adding that it led to the restreaming of the Port Harcourt and Warri refineries by Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd. (NNPC) and the commencement of the Dangote Refinery.
“We are very thankful for Dangote’s rise to the occasion, NNPC’s rise to ensuring that what is being touted is working, that refineries for NNPC are working. We have Aradel coming on board; we have Edo refinery there; we have the Niger Delta refinery. All these refining capacities should make Nigeria self-sufficient in product availability,” he added.
He said, prices of products will be cheaper if the government maintains the naira for crude sales and for the government to address issues around the country’s transportation system.
“The Naira for crude should continue and we should start to tinker with the mechanics of how we should not depend on the Naira confession value for that trade because we should at all times be looking to give advantage to our Nigerian Naira to increase because we have quite a lot of things that we can do if we even depend on our currency to do business within ourselves.
“We should quickly start working on our transportation system. We should make sure that our railways are working and the railways are all tied into all the depots in the country,” he noted.
