The Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN) and the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) have decried low patronage at filling stations nationwide due to high petrol prices.
According to PETROAN’s National President, Billy Gillis-Harry, marketers are struggling to cope with the current situation. “We used to buy 45,000 litres of fuel for less than ₦8.5 million, but now it costs around ₦49 million,” he stated.
Gillis-Harry attributed the challenge to high pricing and low returns on investment. “Financial institutions are not supporting us, and the cost of money is high,” he added.
IPMAN spokesman Ukadike Chinedu described filling stations as “ghost places” due to middle-class Nigerians abandoning their vehicles for public transportation.
Chinedu noted that borrowing money from banks to invest in petrol sales has become unprofitable. “There’s no return on investment because the more we sell, the more we make losses,” he said.
The two unions urged President Bola Tinubu to provide a ₦100 billion seed fund to support oil marketers, similar to the aviation and agricultural sectors.
Nigerians are grappling with unprecedented food inflation and quadrupled energy prices under the Tinubu administration. Petrol prices have jumped from less than ₦200 to over ₦1,000 per litre.
Citizens have staged protests against the government’s policies, including petrol subsidy removal and forex rate unification, which are blamed for the high living costs.
The Tinubu administration has insisted that its policies are necessary and won’t be reversed, despite mounting pressure from Nigerians.
