The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Tuesday, directed its downstream subsidiary, the Petroleum Products Marketing Company, PPMC, to ensure steady supply of petroleum products across the country during the festive periods and well into 2018.
Mr. Maikanti Baru, Group Managing Director of NNPC, who stated this during the inauguration of the Board of Directors of PPMC, assured the public that there would be a hitch-free supply of petroleum products nationwide during the Yuletide.
Baru said: “The festive season is fast approaching, a period when almost always, people expect queues to happen. If last year you had a queue-free festive season, we want this year’s to be a season where fuel station attendants will be inviting motorists to their stand for fueling.”
He urged the management of the PPMC to re-strategize to ensure leaner operating cost that would enable it continuously add value to the NNPC corporate entity, adding that the company was not expected to make losses.
Also speaking, Mr. Ikem Obi, Chief Operating Officer, Downstream of the NNPC and alternate Chairman of the PPMC Board, said the downstream was the face of NNPC, and assured that the country would never return to the era of products scarcity.
On his own part, Mr. Umar Ajiya, Managing Director of the PPMC, lauded Baru on his commitment and support in resuscitating depots in parts of the country, which he noted had contributed immensely to the steady supply of products nationwide.
He assured that the company would be placed on the part of profitability, adding that other petroleum products would equally be made available alongside Premium Motor Spirit, PMS, also known as petrol.
According to him, “The NNPC said the PPMC is one of the three new companies that emerged from the old Pipelines and Products Marketing Company (PPMC) after the recent reorganization of the NNPC, adding that it is mainly saddled with marketing of petroleum products.
The other two companies are the Nigerian Pipeline and Storage Company, NPSC, and Marine Logistics. While the NPSC is responsible for managing storage and distribution assets of the Corporation, Marine Logistics executes petroleum products haulage for the NNPC.”