The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited has offered to submit itself to a forensic audit of fuel supply and subsidy management, insisting daily fuel supply is 68 million.
In a statement signed by Mallam Garba Deen Muhammad, Group General Manager (Group Public Affairs Division), NNPC said between January and August 2022, “the total volume of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) imported into the country was 16.46 billion litres, which translates to an average supply of 68 million litres per day.
“Similarly, import in the year 2021 was 22.35 billion litres, which translated to an average supply of 61 million litres per day.”
It said the average daily evacuation (depot truck out) from January to August 2022 “stands at 67 million litres per day, as reported by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA),” while “daily evacuation (depot load outs) records of NMDPRA do carry daily oscillation ranging from as low as four million litres to as high as 100 million litres per day.”
The company said rising crude oil prices and PMS supply costs above PPPRA (now NMDPRA) cap had caused oil marketing companies’ withdrawal from PMS import since the fourth quarter of 2017.
It noted: “In the light of these challenges, NNPC has remained the supplier of last resort and continues to transparently report the monthly PMS cost under-recoveries to the relevant authorities.”
On cost, NNPC said the average international market determined landing cost in Q2 2022 was “$1,283/MT and the approved marketing and distribution cost, N46/litre.”
Also, it said the combination of these cost elements “translates to retail pump price of N462/litre, an average subsidy of N297/litre and a yearly estimate of N6.5 trillion on the assumption of 60 million litres daily PMS supply.”
The NNPC promised to ensure “compliance with existing governance framework that requires participation of relevant government agencies in all PMS discharge operations, including Nigerian Ports Authority, Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, Nigerian Navy, Nigeria Customs Service, NIMASA and all others.”
It acknowledged the possibilities of criminal activities in the PMS supply and distribution value chain, pledging: “As a responsible business entity, NNPC will continue to engage and work with relevant agencies of government to curtail smuggling of PMS and contain any other criminal activities.”
The company also pledged to deliver on its mandate of ensuring “energy security for our country with integrity and transparency.”
