Marketers and sellers of petroleum products are expected to start getting Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), also known as petrol, from the Port Harcourt Refining Company this week, unless there are any last-minute changes. Joseph Obele, the publicity secretary of the Petroleum Products Retail Outlet Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN), confirmed this news.
Since resuming operations in November, it has only been providing fuel to retail outlets owned by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL). Even though marketers are still buying fuel from NNPCL, the fuel being sold right now is imported.
Obele expressed worries about the differences in fuel prices, pointing out that NNPCL sells petrol in Lagos for N899 per litre but charges N970 in Port Harcourt because of transportation costs. He asked NNPCL to make sure the price is the same across the country, especially since fuel stations in Port Harcourt will soon get their supply directly from the refinery.
He confirmed that, as of now, only NNPCL-owned stations are getting fuel from the refinery, but other independent sellers are expected to start loading this week.
After several delays, NNPCL said in November that the old 60,000 barrels-per-day Port Harcourt refinery had resumed operations. They also mentioned that the new facility, which can handle 150,000 barrels per day, is almost finished. NNPCL spokesperson Olufemi Soneye added that the refinery is now making naphtha, a substance used to create petrol.
