Punch
Nigeria’s crude oil valued at N1.64tn was exchanged for refined Premium Motor Spirit, popularly called petrol, under the Direct Sale Direct Purchase arrangement from January to August 2021, according to official data.
The latest data from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited on DSDP cargoes that were swapped for refined petrol show that a total 63.46 million barrels of crude oil were used for the scheme during the period under review.
The national oil firm said in compliance with the Public Procurement Act 2007 and NNPC’s Policy and Procedures, it had to engage qualified and credible companies in a direct sale of crude oil and direct purchase of petroleum products to ensure sustained product supply across the country.
It introduced the scheme in 2016 to ensure adequate petrol imports into the country, and has been the sole importer of the commodity for over four years as other marketers have avoided PMS imports because of the current realities in the nation’s downstream sector.
An analysis of the latest reports on DSDP cargoes indicated that the volumes of crude swapped for petrol in January, February and March 2021 were 5.74 million, 9.39 million and 7.55 million barrels respectively.
The reports, which were obtained by our correspondent from NNPC in Abuja on Friday, showed that the average price/barrel of crude oil and the exchange rates in the eight different months varied.
