The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) says it is more expensive to buy premium motor spirit (PMS), also known as petrol, from the Dangote Petroleum Refinery than other places.
IPMAN’s national assistant secretary, Yakubu Suleiman, appeared on Friday on Arise Television’s Morning Show.
According to Suleiman, members choose less expensive options at different depots throughout Nigeria rather than paying the hefty logistical fees of purchasing petrol from the Dangote plant.
He said:
“If Dangote has a product selling for N1,000, let’s assume, and there’s another place selling for N900, we can’t just say, for the sake of our relationship with Dangote, that we’ll instruct our members to buy there. We must go where the price is lower, where we’ll get profit.”
“As of last week, Dangote’s price was higher than other places.
“Crude prices are coming down internationally, but Dangote’s rate was N995 per litre, and you have to arrange for your own cargo and loading. With additional costs for transport and depot fees, how can we sell it at the final outlet?
“We have to pity Nigerians. IPMAN is trying its best to support the country, especially at this difficult time when people are suffering. We want to source cheaper products to sell at affordable prices for the people.”
Suleiman also accused Aliko Dangote, the founder of Dangote Refinery, of failing to prioritise important stakeholders in its gasoline delivery strategy.
According to the IPMAN secretary, inadequate involvement with independent marketers has restricted their capacity to remove petrol from the facility.
He said:
“As IPMAN, Dangote was supposed to have invited us for engagements—not just IPMAN, but all stakeholders, including MOMAN and DAPMAN. Unfortunately, until this moment, there has been no engagement.”
“What we are asking Dangote to do is to call a stakeholders’ meeting. Let him engage with IPMAN, MOMAN, and DAPMAN so that we can sit down and serve Nigerians.
“He can’t do business in isolation—he needs people, especially IPMAN, as we are the biggest off-takers in this industry.
“If Dangote sold directly to IPMAN at a fair price, fuel costs would have come down in Nigeria by now.
“We’d go straight to his refinery, pay N995 or N900, and transport it directly to our filling stations. I challenge you—if Dangote did this, you would see prices drop at our retail stations within days.”
Suleiman added that the group had made efforts to contact Dangote.
He stated that IPMAN members are eager to support the Dangote refinery but need direct participation to ensure that petrol is available at cheap costs.
“Like every Nigerian, IPMAN is happy for Dangote and his refinery, which is very strategic to the country,” Suleiman said.
“It’s only IPMAN that has tried to engage him. We went to Dangote about three to four times seeking a meeting to discuss synergy between IPMAN and Dangote, but all to no avail. Most times, he tells us he will get back to us.”
Suleiman further stated that IPMAN is eager to buy Dangote products, but the criteria must be met, including the cost of unloading and the ease of loading.
On October 29, Dangote stated that the refinery now has over 500 million litres of petrol, but oil merchants are not purchasing the commodity.
In response, the IPMAN stated that its members had been unable to load petrol from the Dangote refinery for several days and claimed that a payment of N40 billion had been made to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited.
On Friday, the Dangote refinery stated that it had not received payment from the IPMAN for refined petroleum products.