NNPC withdraws dirty fuel, imports clean petrol

Solomon Ezeme

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd (NNPC) has completed the withdrawal of the contaminated Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) in circulation.

According to the NNPC, efforts are already being made to bridge the gap created as sales of the dirty fuel have been stopped by the Federal Government.

It stated that cargoes of pure PMS are presently arriving into the country daily.

Former Lagos State Commissioner for Transportation, Dr. Kayode Opeifa, reacting to the development, commended the efforts of the Federal Government and advised the masses to exercise patience as the Government puts the situation under control.

He equally advised the FG to follow due process in tackling the challenges created by the withdrawal of the dirty fuel while it works towards fully circulating the newly imported fuel.

“This is what you would expect in this kind of situation. You quarantine the quantity, withdraw those in circulation and then begin an investigation and that is the stage that I believe that we should be concerned with so that we don’t have damages beyond what we‘ve had.

“To that effect, as someone in the transport sector with an analytical chemistry background, I think so far for the public, that is adequate. The product is withdrawn.

“We need to be procedural in handling this matter. Vehicles are damaged but it’s not a matter that should be handled based on emotions. We need to get answers to how it happened.

“We have regulatory agencies and they have done the needful in terms of isolation, quarantine and restock. For the general public, what is important is that the product is no longer on the market.

“It is not unusual to have product defects. You have heard of car recalls, airbag recalls when they have gotten to the market. So, the best thing is to ensure that appropriate protocols are used to address this issue,” Dr. Opeifa said.

While confirming the withdrawal, he stated that early detection helped to halt the spread of the methanol blended petrol.

He said, “What I think is the good news out of this whole thing that happened is that it was detected early enough, it was withdrawn within limited time and the fuel supply chain is gradually coming back to normal.”