NNPC to ramp up retail business to 30 percent from 13 percent to ease fuel scarcity
Bukola Odufade is Businessamlive Reporter.
You can contact her on bukola.odufade@businessamlive.com with stories and commentary.
Nigeria’s national oil company, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) said it plans to increase its downstream petroleum sector market share from its current 13 percent to 30 percent, thereby expanding its retail operations to include countries within the West African sub-region by 2019.
Maikanti Baru, NNPC’s Group Managing Director said this in Abuja at the inauguration of the board of the NNPC Retail Limited. Baru
also disclosed that the NNPC would in the course of the period build more product depots to add to its existing 23 depots scattered across the country.
He said: “By mid-2019, this board should propel NNPC Retail into a new height,” adding that it would help ease products supply
and distribution in the country.
Concerning the scarcity of petrol in the country, which is currently ongoing, Baru lauded NNPC Retail for what he said was its strong
intervention measures in providing petrol in Nigeria at a critical time, while claiming that other downstream players were playing underhand games to create artificial scarcity.
He also asked the NNPC Retail Limited to venture into lubricants production, marine and industrial services to boost its revenue profile, adding that it was as in line with the corporation’s quest to become an integrated oil company.
Saidu Mohammed, the chairman of the board, in his response, said that the company would ensure “efficiency and profitability, especially in a downstream system like ours that is highly competitive.”
Yemi Adetunji, managing director of NNPC Retail Limited, also expressed delight over Baru’s reinforcement of the vision of the
company to expand beyond the shores of Nigeria. He said that the targets were achievable especially with the support of the board and management of the company.