The Port Harcourt Refining Company is expected to begin supplying Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) to independent marketers and retailers this week.
This is significant shift from its initial operations, where the refinery exclusively supplied fuel to outlets owned by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL).
Joseph Obele, the Publicity Secretary of the Petroleum Products Retail Outlet Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN), confirmed this development during an interview.
He explained that despite the refinery resuming operations in November, marketers have continued to buy imported fuel from the NNPCL.
Obele expressed concerns over price differences, noting that retailers in Port Harcourt pay more for fuel compared to their counterparts in Lagos.
While Lagos marketers purchase PMS at N899 per litre, Port Harcourt retailers are charged N970 per litre.
“We are requesting that the NNPC sell to us at the same rate as in Lagos now that the refinery is operational,” Obele stated.
He added that marketers in Port Harcourt have yet to start buying directly from the refinery but are optimistic the process will begin this week.
The Port Harcourt refinery, which processes 60,000 barrels per day, resumed operations in November after multiple delays.
According to NNPCL spokesperson Olufemi Soneye, the facility currently produces naptha, blended to create petrol.
Rehabilitation work on the new refinery, with a capacity of 150,000 barrels per day, is ongoing.
Obele called for equity in pricing, urging the NNPCL to standardise the cost of PMS across regions to address the disparity.
