Independent oil marketers may not be able to buy petrol for sale from the Dangote Refinery due to the pricing mechanism in the sector.
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has been the sole off-taker of petrol in the refinery since it rolled out the product on September 15.
However, there has been a pricing disagreement, following which independent marketers have been itching to be given the opportunity for direct purchase from the refinery.
Also yesterday, the House of Representatives made a case for the marketers to be given the opportunity.
But an expert in the industry, Festus Osifo, said with the current situation, even if independent markets are allowed to buy the product from the refinery, the pump price will be higher than it is presently.
Osifo, who spoke at a news conference in Lagos said: “The NNPCL buys petrol from Dangote Refinery at a cost, but does some level of subsidy on it. This is the reason other marketers cannot go and buy directly from Dangote Refinery today; not that NNPCL is stopping them (other marketers) from going to buy.
“But the truth is that if NNPCL is buying at N898 and selling at N950, including factoring in all the costs like those payable to NIMASA, NPA, NMDPRA, etc, and now selling at N700+ to marketers, it means there is a shortfall which NNPCL is managing.
“However, if other marketers go directly to buy from Dangote at the same price, they will probably sell at N1,200 per litre. This is the difference. So, it is not that NNPCL is trying to play monopoly.”
Osifo, who is President of Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), added: “But if there was 100 percent deregulation, then, everybody can go and buy and sell at whatever price they want; but because there is still some form of under-recovery which NNPCL undertakes, then, that is why we still have some price distortions,”
