House Committee on Petroleum Downstream Engages Stakeholders in Interactive Session
In a bid to know the policy thrust, functions as well as the operational challenges of the Ministry, Departments and Agencies under the House of Representatives Committee on Petroleum Downstream; the Chairman, Hon. Dakuku Peterside recently launched a series of interactive sessions with stakeholders in the downstream sector, starting with Mobil Oil Nigeria Plc a subsidiary of Exxonmobil.
The Managing Director of Mobil Oil Nigeria Plc, Mr. Tunji Oyebanji was present to brief the Committee on his company’s activities. He told the lawmakers that Mobil started operation in the downstream sector in 1907 with kerosene as its key product.
Today, Mobil Oil Nigeria Plc markets DPK, AGO, PMS, insecticides, lubricants and is also a key player in Real Estate. Mr. Tunji decried the poor management of jetties which delays vessels for sometimes 30 days on the queue before they get products and urged the lawmakers to assist them in that regard.
Mobil Oil Nigeria Plc he said has contributed 18.96 billion naira to the petroleum support fund and another 293 million naira to Petroleum Products Pricing and Regulatory Agency (PPPRA).
The Regional Manager of Forte Oil Plc, (former African Petroleum (AP)) Mr. Mohammed Lawan in his session had told the Committee that his company was the first indigenous company to privatize and had strong presence in 30 states. Forte Oil Plc also has 50,000 metric tons capacity lubricant plant at the Apapa installation. Mr. Lawan told the Committee that the company has about 500 retail outlets across the country and intends to run 24hours service in some major cities like Abuja, Kano, Port Harcourt and Lagos. It has also donated crash helmets to motorcyclists as part of their corporate social responsibility.
He explained some of the challenges to include product sourcing which he said was key because if they are to get products in Port Harcourt and they deploy their trucks there but do not get the products, it becomes a problem. He also cited inability to access their funds on time from Petroleum Equalization Fund (PEF) as a challenge and further urged the Members to assist them so they can quickly get their funds from PEF and PPPRA.
Sirius Group was another stakeholder at the interactive session. Though the company is relatively a small one it has been able to bring in to the country over 300,000 metric tons of AGO and PMS in the last 24 months using the PSS, PPPRA SCHEME however this does not affect AGO because it has since been deregulated.
According to the Managing Director of the company, Mr. Tony Rapu.
Mr. Tony said the biggest challenge the downstream sector was facing was inadequate infrastructure especially berthing and storage facilities. He alleged that most of the storage facilities in Lagos and in Port Harcourt were built for AGO not PMS, so there was shortage of PMS storage facilities. He also pointed out the issue of insecurity on our water ways which has forced them to carry out all Trans -shipment activities in Lome, Togo, which according to him was safer.
Concluding the interactive session for the day was NIPCO Oil Plc. The company was represented by the National President of Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), who doubles as the Executive Director, Corporate Services of Nigeria Independent Petroleum Company Plc (NIPCO), Alhaji Aminu Abdulkadir.
NIPCO Oil Plc is the commercial arm of IPMAN and it was conceived in year 2000. NIPCO Oil Plc has a complete portfolio of products both in white oil and gaseous fuel. The company also has a state of the art technology with complete automation to load PMS, DPK and AGO.
Alhaji Aminu Abdulkadir further said that, “NIPCO Plc has a truck parking area that can house 300 trucks and has 15,000 IPMAN retail outlets and 100 retail outlets as a company”. It also has a world class LPG terminal with 4,500 metric tons storage capacity, fully automated with minimal human intervention.
Hon. Dakuku Peterside described the interactive sessions as highly educative and informative saying that the Committee will be engaging stakeholders from time to time because it’s a partnership that needs to be sustained for the betterment of the Downstream sector.
Other stakeholders expected to have interactive sessions with the Petroleum Downstream Committee include MRS Oil Nigeria Plc, Oando Oil Plc and Petroleum Products Pricing and Regulatory Agency (PPPRA).
