The inability of the managers of the Petroleum Support Fund to pay marketers outstanding debts totalling N18bn has been identified as a major cause of the current nationwide scarcity of petroleum products.
Other factors which contributed to the scarcity, according to findings by our correspondent, include a pipeline vandalisation in Lagos, which disrupted supplies from the Atlas Cove to Mosimi, and an order for the arrest of two vessels by a Federal High Court.
But petroleum marketers told our correspondent that the scarcity would abate by Wednesday, as two vessels carrying a minimum of 160tonnes or 18m litres each, had completed discharge of products at the Apapa Depot, with two more being expected within the week.
One of the marketers, who spoke with our correspondent in confidence on Sunday, noted that the impact of the huge debts on PSF was weighing down on their operations.
�The amount they are owing us is more than our combined net profit, which means that a substantial amount of our working capital has been tied down,� he said.
Although the Chairman, Petroleum Products Price Regulatory Agency, Mr. Rasheed Gbadamosi, had said on Thursday that it had released a backlog of N4.2bn, which had been verified, while the outstanding would be paid in January, the marketers said they would only resume products importation when the backlog had been cleared.
In the interim, the marketers said they would depend on the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation for the supply of products.
The NNPC had earlier allayed the fears of inadequate supply, claiming it had more than enough stock to supply the needs of motorists nationwide. It had blamed the scarcity on panic buying and hoarding by marketers in a bid to maximise profit.
But the marketers insisted that they were not hoarding products, and that the seizure of two of their vessels on the orders of a Federal High Court in Lagos was to be blamed.
�The two vessels had problems between the owners and the agents, the owners went to court and the court gave an order for their arrests, even when the vessels had already berthed. One of the vessels stayed seven days and the other eight days, so we lost 15 days,� they said.
While the NNPC claimed to have resumed the pumping of products through the damaged pipeline last Thursday, the time lost while the pipeline was being repaired resulted in a backlog, which could not be cleared immediately.
Our correspondent further learnt that the scarcity was compounded in the Federal Capital Territory, following the demolition of four big filling stations on the orders of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Mallam Nasir, el Rufai
Most of the outlets visited in Lagos on Sunday did not have products. Some of them which were dispensing products, had long queues of motorists waiting to buy fuel.
Black market hawkers had a field day, as motorists who did not have the patience to wait for their turns on the queues had to buy from the street hawkers at exhorbitant prices.