The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has banned 60,000-litre fuel tankers from operating on Nigerian roads.
Speaking to journalists on Wednesday in Abuja, Ogbugo Ukoha, NMDPRA executive director of distribution systems, storage, and retailing infrastructure, said the ban, which would take effect from March 1, would mitigate truck-in-transit incidents.
He said the decision was made in response to the increasing number of road accidents involving heavy-duty petroleum tankers.
On January 18, a petrol tanker explosion at Dikko junction in Gurara LGA of Niger statereportedly killed at least 50 people.
The accident also left several others with varying degrees of injuries.
Speaking at the news conference, Ukoha said the first technical stakeholders’ committee met on Wednesday and set timelines for implementing 10 resolutions to reduce truck-related incidents and fatalities.
The executive director said key agencies participated in the deliberations, including the Department of State Services (DSS), Federal Fire Service, Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), the National Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO), and the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG).
Additionally, he said the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria (DAPPMAN), and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) also took part.
Ukoha said stakeholders agreed that from March 1, 2025, no truck exceeding an axle load of 60,000 litres of hydrocarbon would be allowed to load at any depot.
”The important thing about this is that, for the first time, consensus was built amongst all stakeholders, and we’re continuing to encourage that we will work together cohesively to deliver a safe transportation of petroleum products across the country,” he added.
‘CLAIMS OF POOR QUALITY PETROL IN CIRCULATION UNSCIENTIFIC’
On Saturday, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited denied allegations in a viral video suggesting that the PMS sold by MRS Oil lasts 13 minutes longer than that of NNPC.
Ukoha said allegations of poor quality petrol in circulation are bogus, misleading, and unscientific, stressing that all imported and locally refined petroleum products must meet strict regulatory standards before entering the market.
”The regulator would usually be more circumspect and not respond to every comment that is made in the public,” he said.
”But it’s important that people who dabble within the social media space are reminded that it is actually disrespectful, if you imagine that Nigerians are gullible.
”Innocent Nigerians are discerning enough to know that energies need to be directed positively. People who make unscientific claims, bogus data expertise are really not helping the situation.
”As a regulator, we’re working very hard in compliance with the presidential and statutory mandates we have to support the local refineries, to build capacity to the point that Nigerians will have sufficient products, and not just quality, but pricing is also done in a transparent, competitive and fair way.
”That’s the priority we have as the regulator, and that is what we concern ourselves with every day.”
Ukoha said the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) would continue complying with the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), 2021, as well as the specifications set by the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON).
”The standard organisation specification includes parameters such as the research obtain number, the sulfur content, the density, the color, the oxygenate level, and many other parameters that you find within that,” he noted.
”Before any product is distributed in Nigeria, the regulator ensures that from the load port of the product, whether from a domestic refinery or imported from outside the country, and as well as at the discharge port, accredited laboratories must test every product and duly issue certificates of quality to say that the product that is in the vessel meets those specifications.
”It’s only on that basis that products are then discharged and distributed across the country.”
Ukoha explained that hydrocarbons are naturally impure compounds, which is why specifications provide a range of acceptable values, and test results must fall within set limits to be deemed compliant.
The executive director said sulphur content must be moderated to prevent corrosion and environmental pollution.
He also noted that engine performance depends on the research octane number (RON), which is optimised by oxygenate levels for better engine functionality.
”The only color in the current specification that is colorless is the ATK,” he said.
“From the sighting of the product, it is for you to tell that this is PMS because it complies with the color, separate from an AGO.
”Just imagine if you were to put the wrong product without the color into the wrong vehicle or the wrong engine.
“So these are the back end processes the regulator concerns itself and what we prioritise.
“You must meet those specifications; otherwise, we will not let those products be distributed.”
‘DAILY PETROL CONSUMPTION DECLINED TO 50M LITRES AFTER SUBSIDY REMOVAL’
Ukoha said no oil marketing company with refinery ownership has imported petrol in 2025.
The NMDPRA official said between January and February, local refineries contributed less than 50 percent of the country’s daily petrol needs.
He said if the shortfall is not bridged, the country could face a scarcity, emphasising the regulator’s commitment to ensuring sufficient petroleum product supply nationwide.
”All of us have experienced a yuletide free from any scarcity. Let me reconfirm that from year to year, we saw an increase in the demand of PMS by 2021, 2022 up to 2023 and just before the current administration came in, the daily PMS supply sufficiency was always in excess of 60 million, averaging about 66 million a day for PMS,” he explained.
”Following the president’s withdrawal of subsidy, the announcement on May 29, 2023, we immediately saw a steep decline on consumption and between then and as we speak, we’ve continued to do plus or minus 50 million that’s considerable reduction in volumes.”
He noted that domestic refineries contribute less than 50 percent to the daily average of 50 million litres, with the shortfall being sourced through imports, in line with the Petroleum Industry Act.(The Cable)
