Fuel importation: Marketers demand equal access to forex
Oil marketers have projected that the ex-depot price of Premium Motor Spirit, popularly called petrol, would hit N515/litre once they source foreign exchange rate at the parallel market for the importation of PMS.
Ex-depot price is the price marketers buy products at the depot and it determines the price at which they sell to motorists at filling stations.
Dealers under the aegis of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria called on the Federal Government to provide opportunity for marketers to start importing petrol by enabling dealers to have access to foreign exchange.
Currently, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company is the sole importer of PMS into Nigeria, as other marketers stopped importing the commodity due to their inability to access the United States dollar.
Marketers also stated that the ex-depot price of petrol by NNPCL Retail was currently N467.39/litre, and explained that this was because the national oil company was sourcing its dollars at a cheaper rate.
“The exchange rate of N761/$ at the parallel market is what we are battling with as I’m talking to you right now, because that is where most marketers source their dollars. NNPCL’s ex-depot price is not realistic for other marketers, because they (NNPCL) source their dollar cheaper, which is at the N461/$ CBN rate.
“So if any marketer is importing today, the cheapest ex-depot price that has been calculated for us is not less than N505/litre; some are as high as N511/litre, while others are as high as N515/litre,” an oil marketer, who pleaded not to be named to avoid victimisation, stated.
Asked whether marketers had started importing PMS, the source replied, “We have not started. NNPCL is still supplying and they are asking us to come and pay the difference between the old price that they gave us, and the new price that they want to sell to us. Now they are selling to us based on the deregulated price.”
Oil marketers stated that if the NNPCL should continue to access forex cheaper than other marketers, it would not be fair to private dealers, stressing that it was better everyone accessed the dollar at the same rate.
Asked to state what was the ex-depot price of NNPCL, the source replied, “it is N467.39/litre, and that is for NNPCL Retail.”
Let marketers import fuel, says IPMAN
Ukadike called on the government to give oil marketers the opportunity to start importing petrol, since the commodity was now deregulated.
Although he identified the lack of the United States dollar as a challenge, the IPMAN official argued that the government should allow marketers to access the foreign exchange the same way it was being accessed by the NNPCL.
Also, with respect to the cost of PMS and its imports, the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority announced that it was no longer going to fix the prices of petrol, or release templates for the commodity, rather this would be done by marketers.
“The NNPCL is importing and has not given people the opportunity to join them in importing, so as to see whether private sector operators can import the product cheaper or not. So there is no competition. In a deregulated regime, there must be competition, everyone with capacity should be allowed to import,” Ukadike stated.
When asked whether other marketers would now resume imports since the government had finally deregulated petrol price, Ukadike replied, “Marketers can import, but let me tell you some of the factors militating against this. The first is that there won’t be availability of dollars.
“You will source your dollar from the parallel market and if you are not careful in doing this, and you go into the importation of petroleum products, you might not come out of it alive at the end of the day.
“So what we are saying is that those advantages that NNPCL has, should be shared with other major importers of petroleum products. If it is through crude buy-back, they should let us know, so that independent players such as IPMAN members, can gather to pay and be able to use it in the buy-back model.
On whether this was possible, he said, “If it is not possible, what are the incentives the government is giving to us to boost petroleum products imports and drive competition?
“For independent marketers, the most important thing is that there should be availability of petroleum products, and the government should open up the space for importers and investors to come in.”