The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu has ordered the Group Managing Director of NNPC, Maikanti Baru to end the embarrassing fuel scarcity in Nigeria this week.
His directive is to give the foreigners coming for Nigeria International Petroleum Summit, NIPS slated for February 18-22, 2018 in Abuja unnecessary embarrassment.
Mr. Kachikwu said the Federal Government had given the ministry the nod to get experts and private investors to re-tool the ailing refineries and get them working up to 90 per cent capacity in order to meet the 2019 deadline of ending fuel importation.
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Speaking to the newsmen in Abuja, Kachikwu said: “On these fuel queues, we are working round the clock to address it. Lagos is relatively okay. Abuja is struggling because of logistics challenges. But there is improvement from what you used to have late last year.
“I’ll instruct NNPC to work night and day to ensure this is over before next week. It won’t speak well for visitors to come and see queues everywhere.
“Mr. President is also committed to addressing this challenge. We have had price adjustments since I came in and he has said the price will remain where it is today. He understands the suffering Nigerians are going through and very committed to ending it.
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It requires some re-engineering. My directive is that they must get the products to all parts of the countryâ€, the minister said.
On the forthcoming NIPS, Kachikwu disclosed that the event would attract loads of investments for the country by opening new business windows for both players in the private and public sector.
He said the event would be declared open by President Muhammadu Buhari, who would be represented by the Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.
“We want to reduce massive influx of Nigerian shareholders in OTC. It has turned into a massive jamboree and became a Nigerian gathering. So, we took a policy to reduce that. We came up with this and had FEC to approve it and also endorse the consultant with whom we will execute it,†Kachikwu said.
www.sojworld.com © February 15, 2018
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