*Fuel consumers waiting at a filling station.
16 May 2016, Abuja — Petrol stations in the country seem not to be satisfied with the recent hike in the price of petrol to between N135 and N145 per litre, as a majority of them now resort to under-dispensing of the product.
It was observed in Abuja and environs that a number of the petrol stations, though selling at N145 per litre, had manipulated their pumps, and were now defrauding motorists with incorrect measurements.
Petrotec filling station in Suleja, Niger State, along the Abuja-Kaduna Expressway, was selling at N135 per litre, but a motorist complained that he bought 20 litres of petrol but was served about 15 litres.
At the NNPC Mega Station at Kado in Abuja, one motorist complained that before the hike, it took N2,500 to fill his tank when it was at half tank but was shocked to spend N5,000 to fill his tank in the same position at the NNPC petrol station.
He wondered why it would take double the initial amount when the price was not doubled. Motorists called on the Department of Petroleum Resources, DPR, and other regulatory agencies to come to the aid of motorists and sanction defaulting petrol stations.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian Association for Energy Economics, NAEE, weekend, emphasized the need for the Federal Government to fix the country’s refineries, stating that if all the refineries were working at about 80 to 90 percent capacity, the price of Premium Motor Spirit, PMS, would drop to between N115 and N125 per litre.
Addressing newsmen in Abuja, Professor Wumi Iledare, President, NAEE, also called for the proper calibration and adjustment of the Petroleum Product Pricing Regulatory Agency’s, PPPRA, pricing template for a market dictated margin.
*Michael Eboh – Vanguard
