The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) is set to hold discussions with Dangote Petroleum Refinery between Tuesday and Wednesday to finalise terms on the cost and lifting of petrol from the refinery.
Reports on Sunday indicated that the Petroleum Retail Outlet Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN) had been requested by the $20 billion Lekki-based refinery to resubmit its application for petrol lifting.
PETROAN remains optimistic that petrol prices could drop in the coming days once competition in the downstream oil sector takes full effect as marketers begin loading products from the refinery.
IPMAN described the upcoming agreement with Dangote as a critical step toward ensuring the lifting of petroleum products, contributing to fuel supply stability and efficiency across the country.
Recently, the Federal Government granted petroleum marketers permission to lift petrol directly from the Dangote refinery without involving the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC).
The Minister of Finance and Chairman of the Naira-Crude Sale Implementation Committee, Wale Edun, said, “Moving forward, petroleum product marketers are now able to purchase PMS (petrol) directly from local refineries without the intermediary role of NNPC. Marketers are encouraged to initiate direct purchases from refineries on mutually negotiated commercial terms, which will promote competition and improve market efficiency.”
IPMAN’s National Publicity Secretary, Chinedu Ukadike, confirmed on Sunday that the association expects to meet with Dangote refinery officials soon to establish a business relationship.
“We hope to sit down with Dangote maybe Tuesday or Wednesday and if they give us a template or price, we will move to Dangote. I want to reassure you that we have all it takes to off-take whatever Dangote will give to us,” Ukadike said during an interview on Arise TV.
He further emphasised that IPMAN has addressed previous challenges, such as a lack of storage facilities, by acquiring tank farms, which now enables better distribution.
“The issue of not having tank farms is gone because we have addressed the issue and now have farm tanks. Anywhere Dangote says they will give us our products, we will distribute them to our marketers,” he added.
PETROAN President, Billy Gillis-Harry, also commented that the group had been asked to resubmit its request to lift petrol from Dangote’s refinery.
“We have written to them (Dangote) several times and they are fully aware of what PETROAN has been doing. One of the executive directors there called me to say that they are going to set up a meeting with us, so we are waiting for that to happen. Hopefully, we can do that this week,” he stated.
On whether petrol prices would drop, Gillis-Harry explained, “The price can be knocked down to N700/litre; it depends on the volatility of the market and this does not always mean upward prices, it could also mean prices coming down. If we have massive supply, people may cut prices down.”
Meanwhile, Ukadike noted that the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) had issued bulk purchase licenses for independent marketers, allowing them to lift products directly from Dangote.
“The NMDPRA has issued a bulk purchase license for independent marketers so that we can off-take from the Dangote refinery. We have also been promised an import license so that we can import. These are the factors of deregulation,” he said.
Addressing the debt owed to oil dealers by NNPC, Ukadike mentioned that NNPC had agreed to clear outstanding payments and release locked funds, which had previously affected fuel pricing due to associated bank charges.
He added, “By Monday or Tuesday, the new price will be out, and I will announce it. We don’t want that impression that independent marketers are selling higher than NNPC.”
IPMAN also sought the government’s support in setting up an energy bank to help marketers deal with the high interest rates affecting fuel prices.
“We are working with security agencies to ensure that products are not stolen and that products meant for independent marketers go to their stations. Also, we are working to ensure there is nothing like adulteration,” Ukadike stated.
He concluded by noting that independent marketers are struggling due to the high cost of purchasing petrol, which has risen significantly since the subsidy removal.
“Before the subsidy removal, we bought products at N8.1m, but now we are buying it close to N50m. How many people can survive that?” he remarked.