The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) says it supplies five million litres of Dual Purpose Kerosene (DPK) consumed in the country.
The NNPC disclosed this in Abuja in a statement by Mr. Ndu Ughamadu, the corporation’s Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division on Sunday.
Ughamadu attributed the statement to the NNPC Group Managing Director, Dr. Maikanti Baru, who spoke at a two-day Investigative Public Hearing of the House of Representative Committee on Petroleum Resources (Downstream).
”The nation’s three refineries in Port Harcourt, Kaduna and Warri produce five million litres of kerosene daily, representing more than 60 per cent of the national daily consumption requirement of eight million litres.
”The balance of three million litres of the product is being imported by private petroleum products marketers,” the statement said.
The statement stated that kerosene and other petroleum products supplied by the Corporation were of high quality and met safety standards.
”The NNPC ensures that the entire refining output in Nigeria through its refineries and any products imported by it to make up for market supply -shortfalls meet the specifications of the Nigerian Institute of Standard and Standards Organization of Nigeria.
”NNPC will not compromise safety and quality in its products and processes.
”All depots in the country have laboratories for quality checks to ensure safety of consumers,” the statement said.
Baru assured Nigerians that in keeping with its avowed commitment to the safety of consumers, the Corporation investigated the recent incident of kerosene explosion in Calabar.
It, however, could not trace the truck that delivered the adulterated product in any of its depots loading schedule.
He advised the committee to contact the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), which is the petroleum industry regulator, to investigate the source of the adulterated kerosene among the private depots.
Baru called on relevant authorities to empower the DPR to carry out its responsibilities more diligently by ensuring that petroleum products imported by marketers met the required quality and safety standards as NNPC could not guarantee the quality of products imported by other market players.
“The quality of kerosene being sold to the general public require regular inspection to ensure that it meets health, safety, environment and quality standards at all times.
“This is to avert any regulatory breaches or threat to lives and properties of the general public and consumers of the products,” Baru said.
Baru was represented at the hearing by the NNPC Chief Operating Officer, Downstream, Mr Henry Ikem-Obih.
The statement also reported the House Committee Chairman, Joseph Akinlaja, as saying the Committee was deeply concerned about the high cost of kerosene in the market and incessant explosions due to adulteration.
Akinlaja said the committee was mandated by the House to, among others, work out a clear cut policy framework on deregulation of kerosene to avert the current challenges faced by the masses in procuring the product;
It is also empowered to arrest the resurgence of kerosene explosion with attendant fatalities and investigate the disappearance of ₦11 billion worth of petroleum products belonging to the NNPC. (NAN)
