The Nigerian Association of Road Transport Owners, (NARTO), has threatened to stop haulage of petroleum products across the country on account of the N430 per litre cost of diesel and other operational challenges.
The association’s National President, Yusuf Lawal Othman, stated in Abuja yesterday, that the operational cost has become unbearable and would in the coming week cripple haulage of the product.
While some States, including the Federal Capital Territory, (FCT), have been struggling with fuel scarcity despite promises of the sufficiency of the product by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, (NNPC) Ltd, Othman said the challenge could escalate across the country.
NARTO had earlier decried the delay in the payment of about N45 billion bridging cost, demanding for an increase in the transportation allowance factored into the pump price of petrol; however, the continuation of petrol subsidy payment by the Federal Government meant that the freight cost would remain.
Earlier this year, the FG had hinted at a 20% hike in the cost of freighting petrol across the country, as part of measures to boost the revenue of transport owners. The increase would have raised the cost of bridging petrol to N9.11 per litre from N7.51 in the petrol pricing template of the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency, (PPPRA).
Decrying the prevailing situation, Othman said, “We will tell them (tanker drivers) to park if nothing positive is done, because we cant operate in such way. Therefore, transporters whose freight rate is fixed and regulated cannot sustain the business if nothing is done; we cant operate.
“We cant work if nothing is done to increase the freight rate. The condition is unbearable because of the cost of diesel, he emphasised.
He urged the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) to urgently increase the freight rate to reflect the present cost of Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) diesel and spare parts.
According to him, the ex-depot cost of AGO, otherwise known as diesel, soared to N401 per litre yesterday, Monday.
Othman warned that it might hit N420 per litre at the filling stations if something is not done urgently.
To find a leeway, Othman urged the Federal Government to convene a stakeholder meeting with a view to increasing the freight rate and address other pressing issues of cost of operation.
We are appealing to the CEO of the downstream regulatory agency. He has to sit down with us immediately and ensure that the freight rate is increased to reflect the rising cost of diesel and other spare parts.
We have a problem. Today, the price of AGO ex-depot is N401 per litre. It means that in Abuja, Kaduna, Kano, it will reach N420 to N430. At the filling station, it will reach like N450.
It is just to regulate our rising operation cost. It is as simple as that. Otherwise, our people have parked their trucks and more people are going to park, Othman said.
