The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association (IPMAN) has said members of the organization are ready to lift petrol from Dangote Refinery.
The National Assistant Secretary of the IPMAN, Yakubu Suleiman, said the controveries over the time was IPMAN’s insistence that they would want to purchase petrol directly from Dangote refinery and not through middle men.
Speaking with Arise TV on Tuesday morning (today), Suleiman stated that the asociation would continue its meeting with Dangote refinery team today to agree of pricing.
He disclosed that by Wednesday, a new petrol price would be annouced to Nigerians.
“Dangote called us and he sat with Mr. President (IPMAN president) and they had a very fruitful discussion, which at the end of the day make now build a good synergy between the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria and Dangote Refinery.
“We are Nigerians, we are as well happy with Dangote Refinery, we prayed for him, for his success, but it’s just the synergy. What we had been calling on was how the synergy can be built, and it’s all for the sake of patriotism. How can we serve Nigeria and Nigerians? And we are happy that with that meeting with Dangote now, we have already resolved all the nitty-gritty issues, and by the grace of God, very soon, maybe within the next coming days, Nigerians will really feel the impact.
“And the whole thing revolves around how do we have cheaper petroleum price? Like I said earlier in my former interview that it really bothers us that Nigerians are buying at a higher rate. But I want to assure you, like what Mr President has stated yesterday, their discussion with Dangote is still ongoing, I believe between today or tomorrow, we are going to finish on the issue of pricing. Then, by then, when we start lifting, Nigerians definitely will appreciate,” Suleiman said.
IPMAN Assistant Secretary further dismissed allegation of a cartel running the organization and the oil industry.
He added that IPMAN is not a cartel but was seeking a fair business process that would benefit Nigerians.
“There is no issue of any cartel that is in existence, even within IPMAN. IPMAN is not a cartel. We are marketers ready to serve Nigerians, and because, why we were, initially you saw we were just trying to sit down with Dangote for us to have a suitable market, is that we are tired of buying our products with the middle men.
“We want to buy this product directly from Dangote. And things now have been normalised, we are happy, we thank Dangote for agreeing that IPMAN should go directly to him and buy this product, and take it to the end users,” Arise TV quoted him.