AGS NEWS – The President of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), Festus Osifo, has highlighted the reasons behind the persistent fuel queues at filling stations across the country.

Speaking at the 2024 PENGASSAN Energy and Labour Summit in Abuja, Osifo pointed to weak and outdated distribution chains in the downstream oil and gas sector as a key issue.

He noted that Nigeria’s reliance on a single point of product importation and truck distribution is inadequate for its large population.

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Osifo also attributed the fuel shortages to bad roads and flooding, which have disrupted supply chains.

He called for urgent reforms to improve and modernize the country’s distribution system and strengthen the value chain for more efficient fuel distribution.

Additionally, Osifo identified the high cost of local fuel production as another challenge, noting that it is 15% to 20% higher than in other regions.

He urged the government to take over security responsibilities from oil and gas companies to reduce production costs and to enforce stricter penalties against oil theft to promote integrity in the industry.