Checks by Vanguard in Lagos showed there were long queues at filling stations with commercial stocks of the product as panic buying continued across the state.
Illegal operators hawk fuel in Lagos
Illegal operators were also seen hawking the product along Ikorodu Road, Maryland and Marina, due mainly to the absence of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Regulatory Authority, NMDRA, industry regulator, to enforce compliance.
Also in Abuja, petrol supply situation grew worse yesterday as more filling stations ran out of stock while black marketers hiked their price to N1,500 per litre.
Checks by Vanguard showed that most petrol stations including outlets owned by major marketers in the central area of the city were shut down.
NNPC station opens, selling
However, NNPC Retail mega station and NIPCO stations continued to dispense with long queues seen at the stations located in Karu, Airport Road and the Central Business District.
The supply difficulty which the NNPC Limited blamed on logistics challenge and flooding in the coastal areas continued into the sixth day despite assurances from government officials that the challenges were being resolved.
Minister of State assures consumers
The Minister of State Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, said that normalcy was being restored.
In a post on his verified social media handle X (formerly Twitter), the Minister wrote: “Dear Nigerians, I understand the frustration many of you are feeling due to the fuel queues in cities such as Abuja. Recent flooding on the trucking route and unavoidable logistical challenges due to weather concerns have temporarily disrupted our distribution chain.
“I assure you that our dedicated team is working round the clock to resolve these issues. We are committed to restoring normal fuel supply as quickly as possible. Thank you for your patience and understanding during this time”.
Peoplesmind
