The fuel scarcity which surfaced in Lagos late Monday night eased slightly yesterday as more filling stations opened up their outlets for sale to motorists.
The filling stations that sold fuel have however adjusted their fuel dispensing machines to reflect an increased pump price. For instance at Heyden filling station in Ilupeju, petrol sold for N179 per litre against its previous pump price of N169/litre before the scarcity. Some other independent marketers in the state sold the product for between N180 and N195 per litre. The new pump price, marketers claim, is in reaction to a hike in depot price of the product which rose from N148.17 per litre to N178 per litre at the private depots. Checks showed that some major NNPCL station in the Lagos metropolis closed to motorists as they claimed they had no stock.
The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Western Zone, has attributed the increase in the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) popularly known as petrol, to the hike in depot price of the commodity by private depot owners.
The Chairman, Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) Western Zone, Dele Tajudeen, confirmed the price hike by private depots since last week, a situation he said has been further compounded by the non-availability of petrol in any of the NNPC depots.
“None of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) depot has petrol and the private depots took advantage of the situation to hike the price. The only option for our members is to opt for private depots to keep our business moving. We are totally against the increase because it will affect our profit margins and the masses. Some private depots who have product, deliberately, refused to sell for reasons best known them,” Tajudeen explained.
In Ibadan, Oyo state capital, the queues which began late Tuesday night had become more visible by yesterday morning as commercial motorists and private car owners storm petrol stations for the product.
