Residents of Lagos State may soon face a potential shortage of fuel or petrol, as reports indicate that fuel marketers are closing down filling stations, impacting motorists and other consumers in need of the product.

Numerous petrol stations were reported to have ceased operations recently as customers attempted to purchase fuel. Vanguard reported that this closure of stations appeared to be a gradual process, initiated after the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) reduced its import volumes to allow both major and independent marketers to engage in importation, following the market deregulation.

However, it has been observed that the situation has become more widespread due to challenges faced by marketers in importing fuel. These challenges primarily stem from difficulties related to sourcing foreign exchange and the instability prevailing in the domestic market.

“The reduction in NNPC Limited‘s import, aimed at enabling the marketers to embark on importation and the inability of the marketers to import, has created a vacuum that needs to be addressed.

“The situation could have been very serious if many people were still buying the product. But the shortage is currently mild because many automobile owners are not driving frequently or have completely abandoned driving because of the high cost of petrol currently going for between N568 per liter and N590,” said a marketer, who spoke to the publication on condition of anonymity.

However, a visit to Ijegun and Satellite depots indicated that fuel lifting was ongoing, even though an operator confirmed that stocks had been reduced.

Meanwhile, the National President of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Chinedu Okoronkwo, was said to have told journalists that “We are still loading.”

But it was doubtful if all the products lifted at the depots were delivered to the filling stations, as officials of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), were not visible to enforce compliance.

Despite the challenges, the Chief Executive Officer of Petrocam Trading Nigeria Limited, Patrick Ilo, said deregulation remained a good policy targeted at growing the downstream sector.

He said: “President Bola Tinubu was conscious about deregulation. There are problems, but problems are meant to be solved; we will surmount the problems, and over time, they will be over. I can guarantee that there will be no fuel scarcity in Nigeria, with deregulation.”

On his part, however, the founder of Petrocam Group, Shiraz Gany, said: “Deregulation has been good for the country because, at least, there are no inefficiencies.

”You can pay for premium motor spirit, PMS, at market price. Government can now spend money on critical infrastructure to make the country more efficient for Nigerians.”