The Managing Director of Petroleum Products Marketing Company Limited, Haruna Momoh, has said that with the over 2.6 billion litres of PMS, otherwise known as petrol, the country has no reason to experience fuel shortage for some time.
According to Momoh, the NNPC has always ensured regular supply of PMS.
He said: “The vandals have always frustrated the efforts by NNPC to provide regular supply of PMS.
“The 5,120 kilometre pipeline network are not being adequately utilised due to pipeline vandalism.
“We want vandals to be prosecuted and sent to jail to discourage others who may see the business as lucrative.”
Addressing journalists during the visit of the Group Managing Director of NNPC, Andrew Yakubu, who was in Ogun State on Tuesday to assess actions taken so far to secure the critical System 2B Pipeline at Arepo, Momoh said that the deployment of technology to make pipeline inaccessible to vandals would boost adequate supply of PMS all over the country.
He said that NNPC has stocked up over 2.6 billion litres of petrol in 258 tanks of different sizes in its depots across the country, adding that the current stock of PMS would not be static.
He promised that the profile of the volume in the depots would be continually increased.
Also speaking, Yakubu said that the corporation was determined to ensure that the issue of pipeline vandalism became a thing of the past through its current short and long term measures
Yakubu listed these measures to include immediate mobiliaation of engineers to site to clamp and fix the ruptured points at Arepo to restore pumping of petroleum products; deployment of technology to make the pipeline inaccessible to oil thieves and vandals; clearing and rehabilitation of the pipeline right of way to make the area accessible and difficult for vandals to carry out their nefarious activities in hiding; provision of platforms for security men to effectively monitor movements in and around the area; and collaborating with state government and other stakeholders for the effective security of the pipeline.
He said that the corporation was committed to protecting the pipelines from vandals through the configuration work going on and securing the right of ways.
He said: “We hold this project in very high esteem.
“Before we embarked on this project, we were losing about N600 million every weak to pipeline vandalism.
“We have handled Port Harcourt and Aba pipelines a couple of weeks ago and we were also at Warri.
“This particular line runs from Atlas Cove to Ibadan and we are serious about securing the right of ways from Atlas cove to Ibadan.”
Yakubu further disclosed that the corporation was collaborating with all stakeholders such as the police, the Nigerian Civil Defence Corps and the Nigerian Armed Forces to curb the activities of vandals in the country.
He added that the government has embarked on Turn Around Maintenance of all the refineries in the country, adding that the three refineries were working optimally.
He said: “All the three refineries are optimally operating and are yielding maximum value.
“We started the TAM starting with the Port Harcourt refinery.
“We have mobilised the contractors.
“With this, we have position ourselves for optimal maximisation of the nation’s refineries.
“We are working towards reducing dependence on petroleum product importation.”
Trending
- Oyo police arrest alleged killer of Corps member in Ogbomoso
- Lagos journalist donates uniforms, other materials to alma mater
- Alleged Fraud: Judge’s absence stalls Fayose’s trial
- Road crash: One dead, three injured, N8.7m recovered
- Being categorised underAfrobeats does not offend me – Davido
- Protesters storm APC secretariat, demand Ganduje’s resignation
- How flight engineer saved us from disaster — Joe Abah
- SGF Akume remains our indisputable leader – Ex Benue Governor