Fuel Scarcity Looms As IPMAN Sets for Strike Over N500billion Bridging Claim

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Fresh fuel scarcity is looming in northern states as independent marketers, yesterday, announced a three-day warning strike over non-payment of outstanding bridging costs.
In Kano, the Northern Independent Petroleum Marketers Forum (NIPMF) shutdown the depot of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC), obstructing the movement of tankers.

NIPMF chairman, Musa Yahaya Maikifi, said members would withdraw their services across nine depots in 19 northern states while the strike lasts.

The marketers claimed the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), a subsidiary of NNPC, suspended bridging costs in the last nine months without reason.

He insisted the members would not hesitate to withdraw their services indefinitely if government fails to offset over N500 billion in outstanding payment.

The Federal Government had, in February 2022, claimed N22.7 billion was paid to the marketers. Maikifi, however, denied this, saying the last installment received from NMDPRA was in December 2021.

He said: “As I speak with you, we have shutdown all the nine depots in the northern part of the country. I’m talking about Suleja, Minna, Jos, Yola, Gombe, Maiduguri, Kaduna, Gusau, and of course, here in Kano. We are stopping operations at the depots and withdrawing our service.

“Our concern mainly is the total negligence of government in settling our bridging claims, running into N500 billion daily, and still counting. Our members are almost running on bank liability. We are spending not less than one million naira on diesel to fuel trucks that would transport petroleum products from Lagos to Kano.”

Maikifi added: “Bad roads, security risks, high cost of spare parts and cost of running business are overwhelming due to bad economy. Members have not received their claims in the last nine months, and this is telling seriously on our investment. We will sacrifice for three days and will not hesitate towards a full-blown strike if government continues to neglect our claims.”

Also, at a news conference in Maiduguri, yesterday, General Secretary of Independent Petroleum Marketers Association (IPMAN), Abbas Yakubu, insisted: “Failure to pay our bridging claims will lead to suspension of services at the nine oil depots.”

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