Border closure has reduced petrol smuggling —NNPC

The recent closure of Nigeria’s borders has significantly led to a reduction in the smuggling of premium motor spirit, popularly known as petrol, out of Nigeria, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has said.

Reports indicate that smugglers of PMS smuggled the commodity to as far as Burkina Faso, Mali and Cote d’Ivoire.

But Mele Kyari, the group managing director, NNPC, tweeted that the closure of Nigeria’s borders towards the end of August this year, as well as other interventions, had helped in reducing the smuggling of petrol.

“Significant drop in PMS evacuation from fuel depots noted since August 22nd. May be connected to border closure and other interventions of the security agencies aimed at curbing smuggling. We will contain smuggling of PMS,” Kyari stated.

The NNPC had also stated in July that petrol was being smuggled to neighbouring Ghana, adding that this was largely due to the price disparity of PMS between Nigeria and the West African countries.

The corporation explained that while the pump price of PMS in Nigeria was N145 per litre, the cost in many other West African markets was between N350 to N430 per litre.

According to NNPC, smugglers saw the incentive in smuggling the product from Nigeria to other locations in West Africa, but it stressed that the oil firm was working hard to close up that incentive.

NNPC said in some of those markets, the pump price was around N430 per litre.