The House of Representatives Committee on Petroleum Resources (Downstream), has vowed to go after people behind Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) product racketeering and downstream sharp practices.

This is as the Committee resolved to work with the leadership of the Nigerian Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO) and the Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigerian (PETROAN), to resolving issues with a view to guaranteeing PMS and AGO availability and affordability

Chairman of the committee, Hon. Ikeagwuonu Ugochinyere (PDP-Imo), gave the warning during a meeting with the leadership of the NARTO and the PETROAN in Abuja on Thursday.

Ugochinyere, who noted that the ugly development had hindered progress in the nation’s petroleum sector, insisted that the Committee would bring the saboteurs to justice soon.

On the other hand, the Committee called on the federal government to encourage local petroleum products refiners, saying doing so would help increase availability and affordability of petroleum products in the country.

Besides, the committee said encouragement of local refiners with licences will help to create more jobs and reduce pressure on the nation’s foreign exchange.

It also called for reactivation of the nation’s 23 oil deports and pipelines to ease transportation of petroleum products across the country.

Reading the resolution of the meeting, Chairman of the Committee, Hon. Ugochinyere, also agreed to closely monitor the ongoing repair of the nation’s refineries.

According to him, the meeting “also agreed to look into the status of the over 23 NNPC deports and the national pipeline network and their status to ensure all of them are working.”

He said: “The meeting resolved to commend the leadership of NARTO and PETROAN for calling off the strike which has given room for resumed distribution of petroleum products and also commended the National Security Adviser,the Minister of Petroleum and the NNPC for their roles in the mediation to ensure that NARTO return to the road.

“The committee agreed with NARTO and PETROAN to find sustainable solutions to the present challenges facing the petroleum distribution and petrol outlet owners to avert any other strike or obstruction of the supply of the retail chain.

“The committee agreed with NARTO and PETROAN for an all-inclusive meeting with the leadership of the National Assembly, regulators and other key stakeholders, including security agencies to tackle issues of multiple charges,sharp practices and rising cost of transportation to help achieve sustainable and affordable product distribution and pricing system.

“The committee also agreed for encouragement of local refiners with licences to increase refining and affordable products which will help to create more jobs and reduce pressure on our foreign exchange.

“The committee also agreed to monitor closely the ongoing repair of our national refineries.

The committee also agreed with NARTO and PETROAN that we are going to investigate the issue of retail owners who pay for petroleum products and months after, they don’t get it and the emergence of middle men who now sell these products to the real petrol outlet owners which is the reason why the price keeps rising.

“We also agreed for a stakeholders recommendation from NARTO and PETROAN and others to help in tackling some of the immediate and long-term needs in the industry to help ensure stability.

“We also agreed to look into the status of the over 23 NNPC deport and the national pipeline network and their status to ensure thaf all of them are working.”

According to him, “if this deport and pipeline system is working, there will be no need to have pressure on our roads, with issues of moving these products from the deports to the respective retail outlets.

“We are going to look into this situation and find out also why the concession and the contract that have been given for some of these pipelines have not been completed to ease the movement of petroleum products,”he hinted.

“The committee also agreed for a legislative action to look into how to reduce the freight cost by ensuring the dredging of the seaport that can open vessel landing corridors in other sectors apart from Lagos,Warri,Port-Harcourt, Calabar and so forth,so that the prices of product movement can reduce.

“And also,we agreed to consult further on the issue of amending the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) ,to provide room for inclusion of stakeholders in the downstream sector petroleum distribution and retail chain,” he added. (Saturday Tribune)

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