Many Nigerians have dumped Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPLC, retail outlets for the Dangote Refinery, in partnership with MRS filling stations.
According to our correspondent who went round Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, on Monday observed that motorists have deserted NNPC retail outlets across the nation’s capital for MRS filling stations.
Accordingly, the beehive of fuel queues usually witnessed in most NNPCL retail outlets has disappeared in the past week.
Checks in NNPC filling stations along Kubwa Expressway showed that there were scanty motorists at the retail outlets when compared to the long queues seen at MRS filling stations in the same location.
MRS filling stations dispense fuel at N945 per litre compared to NNPCL which sold at N965 per litre in Abuja.
Recall that at the weekend, a viral video by a reviewer alleged that petrol from an NNPCL filling station does not last compared to Dangote petrol at an MRS filling station.
However, NNPCL, Nigeria’s owned oil firm, has described the claim as baseless and unfounded.
The firm had also gone ahead to threaten a lawsuit against any person who tended to rubbish their petroleum products.
Similarly, the Petroleum Products Retail Outlet Owners Association, PETROAN, backed NNPCL, noting that the quality of the company’s petrol products is high.
Why are motorists dumping NNPCL petrol for Dangote
However, motorists in the nation’s capital, who spoke with our correspondent during a visit to various filling stations, gave their various perspectives on the reason for their preferences.
Ali Mohammed, a taxi driver in Abuja, said that he has dumped NNPCL for Dangote Petrol at MRS filling stations because the latter lasts longer and is cheaper.
“Apart from the price of Dangote petrol at MRS filling stations, I believe that the fuel lasts longer than that of NNPCL.
“I was buying at NNPC Zone 3 filling station before now. When I buy 20 litres of fuel, for instance, at the MRS filling station, it lasts longer than NNPCL,” he claimed.
Also, Kunle Abdulrahman, a resident in Abuja, blatantly said that NNPCL allegedly dries faster compared to MRS.
“The reason I buy fuel at MRS is because the petrol lasts longer for me compared to NNPC.
“Other petrol dries quickly. Again, the price is cheap and favourable,” he said.
Oluwatobi Esther, a Kubwa resident, noted that she was told by her friend about the quality of MRS fuel compared to NNPCL.
According to her, she has been buying petrol from MRS filling station, and it served her better.
“MRS serves me better than NNPCL in my observation,” she stated.
When I newsmeng spoke with the manager of the MRS filling station along Kubwa expressway, Musa Aliyu, he confirmed that in the last weeks, there has been a surge in patronage.
“Queues at our filling stations have been unprecedented lately. I think it is due to the cheaper price and the quality of the fuel,” he said.
However, speaking with a fuel attendant at NNPCL along Kubwa Expressway who preferred anonymity, he noted that the reason for the low patronage is because of the price.
He clarified that the quality of NNPC fuel had remained intact.
“The issue is the pricing of NNPC fuel. We sell at N965 per litre, while the MRS filling station sells at N945? I will tell you for free, if NNPC reduces its fuel price today to N935, you will see long queues here. It is not about quality,” he revealed on Monday.
It’s due to petrol pricing — IPMAN
In an exclusive interview with the spokesperson of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Chinedu Ukadike, he revealed that Dangote Fuel at MRS filling stations is the ‘Bride of Motorists’ today due to the cheaper price.
According to him, motorists are more strictly concerned about the amount spent on the purchase of fuel than the quality.
He noted that the development was expected following the deregulation of the country’s downstream oil and gas sector.
“What is happening is the impact of deregulation. Hence, you have seen competitors using different strategies, including pricing to gain customers.
“MRS filling stations are selling cheaper, so naturally they are expected to have more customers.
“The issue of price is the issue. A taxi driver is concerned about the amount used to purchase the fuel rather than the quality.
“In terms of quality, the products from Dangote Petrol and NNPC are standard,” he stated.
Meanwhile, calls and messages sent to NNPCL spokesperson Olufemi Soneye have not been responded to as of the time of filing this report.
Other filling stations in Abuja sell fuel between N970 and N1,000 per litre.(Daily Reporter)
