Fuel queues are back in Lagos as many filling stations ran out of stock on Sunday, leading to closures and long queues at the few stations still dispensing fuel.
Checks on Sunday revealed that in areas like Bank Anthony, only Total, Northwest, and NNPCL stations were open, each with long queues, while the Mobil Station at Salami Shaibu in Somolu Metropolis was closed due to chaotic scenes caused by commercial vehicles.
Petroleumprice.ng also observed that most filling stations along Ikorodu Road were not selling PMS, while illegal fuel hawkers were spotted along Ikorodu Road, Maryland, Gbagada, and Ogba, taking advantage of the situation. The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd. (NNPCL) and NIPCO stations at Fadeyi Bus Stop on the same road also had long queues.
On Sunday, there were long queues at NNPCL stations located at Cement bus stop along the Lagos-Abeokuta expressway
Some marketers attributed the supply difficulties to NNPC Ltd.’s inability to pay importers since March. They alleged that NNPCL, as the sole importer, was responsible for the scarcity.
Motorists and commuters expressed frustration over the fuel shortage, which has led to a significant increase in transport fares across Lagos.
A banker lamented that the scarcity had caused persistent traffic jams around fuel stations on Ikorodu Road and in Ikeja, with motorists queuing for hours at the few stations still dispensing fuel. He noted that the queues had been growing since last Wednesday and urged the government to address the issue to ease the movement of workers and residents in Lagos.
“Some petrol stations that dispensed fuel sold it at prices ranging from N618 to N800 per litre, depending on the area, leading to an increase in transport costs,” Edwin said.
Jimoh Saka, a bus driver at the Ileja Bus Stop in Bariga, expressed his frustration over the struggle to obtain fuel, justifying the fare hike from N200 to N300 for trips from Bariga to Onipan. “The increase in transport costs is not our fault. We sleep at petrol stations just to buy fuel and continue our business. Things are hard, and people should understand it is not our fault,” Saka explained.
Another driver, Gbenga Saliu, shared his frustration over the stress of waiting in long queues, stating, “It’s seriously stressful. If you’re not patient in the queue, you end up buying from the black market at over N1,200 per litre or from some stations that sell at N800 or N700 per litre,” he added.
Meanwhile, Olufemi Soneye, chief corporate communications officer at NNPC Ltd., clarified in a statement on Sunday that the company was not owing international oil traders $6.8 billion, as some media reports have claimed. Soneye explained that in the oil trading business, transactions are often carried out on credit, and it is common to owe at times.
He emphasised that NNPCL had been fulfilling its obligations, paying invoices on a first-in-first-out (FIFO) basis. He also refuted claims that NNPCL had not remitted any money to the Federation Account since January, stating that the company and its subsidiaries regularly remit taxes to the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).
“NNPC Limited is the largest contributor to the tax revenue shared monthly at the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC),” Soneye said.
He further clarified that NNPC Ltd had no role in the fiscalisation of the quality and quantity of imported petroleum products, which is the responsibility of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA).
