The Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Mele Kyari, says that fuel queues will disappear in the next two days.
President Bola Tinubu declared the end of the era of fuel subsidy payments during his inaugural speech at Eagle Square in Abuja on Monday, causing prices to rise across the country.
Fuel queues also resurfaced across the country as Nigerians forage for the premium product which rose from around N185 per litre to between N400 and N600 per litre.
But speaking during an interview with newsmen, Kyari assured Nigerians that the situation won’t last.
“I don’t see it stand beyond another day or two (days) max,” the NNPCL boss said. “I don’t see it (queues) actually stand beyond Saturday.”
“We have supply for the key trouble with PMS system is supply. There are over 810 million litres of petroleum in depots, tanks and fuel stations across the country.
“So, you don’t have the problem of transferring those. That means you have supply on the ground in your house. People panic and run to fuel stations to buy. They now know that there is certainty of pricing so they have to go back.”
Kyari went further to revealed that President Bola Tinubu’s administration had reached an agreement to have one of the four refineries rebuilt and operational by the end of the year.
The NNPC said this when he visited the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Senator Abdullahi Adamu, at the party secretariat in Abuja said that following the hike in pump price and the resultant effect on commercial fare, the president is working out some palliative measures to ease the pains of Nigerians.
According to him, a rehabilitation effort is underway to ensure that one of the refineries is operational by the end of the year.
“I’m aware that the president has directed some engagements and some palliatives will be put in place. I am very sure this will happen. There is an ongoing process of rehabilitation. One of them will come this year, the second one will come on stream next year and then the third will follow thereafter.
“Of course, it is very obvious that we can no longer afford subsidy. Subsidy bills have piled up. The country is not able to settle NNPC for the money we are spending on subsidy. Therefore, pricing this petroleum at the market price is the right thing to do at this point in time and I believe it would benefit the country in the long term,” he said.
