There are indications that major and independent marketers may be excluded from petroleum products import in the second quarter.

The Guardian learnt that this is due to the failure of the marketers to deliver the 22 percent allocation granted to them which is causing the current scarcity of petrol in the country.

Consequently, the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) may allocate 100 percent of petroleum products import to the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) in the second quarter.

It was gathered that the PPPRA is expected to release the list for the second quarter import as well as review the N86.50 per litre of petrol as prescribed by the price modulation regime. Even within the NNPC itself, the relocation of petrol importation from commercial to Crude Oil Marketing Department (COMD) has further exacerbated the importation bottlenecks.

Meanwhile, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, is slated to meet the new appointees to brief them on what their duties would be this morning at the NNPC Towers.

It was not clear as at yesterday whether the 96 senior managers at the Petroleum Products Marketing Company (PPMC) who were recalled from their various duty posts since October last year would be posted alongside the new appointees.

One of the affected senior managers told The Guardian yesterday that there had not been major labour unrest since they were rendered redundant because their salaries and other entitlements had been paid up to date even when they had not worked in the last five months.

He said: “We have been stranded since last October when the management summoned all the senior managers to report to the headquarters from their various stations. There has been no agitation as such because our entitlements have been paid up to date even though we have not worked since last October. We believe that all of us would be posted to any of the companies that have been created within the corporation.”

A source close to how importation of petrol works in the corporation said: “Before now, the importation of petroleum products was done by the commercials, but since it was moved to COMD, there has been delay in arrival. The people in the COMD most times do not realise the urgency needed when importing products. The way it works is that the COMD sells crude oil, then buys refined products and this sometimes takes time which is causing the delay.”

Source: Guardain