FG Paid N103bn To Oil Marketers In 8 Months

The Federal Government has disclosed that it paid oil marketers N103.03 billion in the past eight months as bridging cost for the transportation of petrol across the country.

The government’s clarification came two days after the Northern Forum of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, IPMAN, threatened to withdraw their services citing huge debts owed to its members by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, NMDPRA.

But NMDPRA in a statement in Abuja explained that the payment of bridging claims was a continuous process, disclosing that a meeting has been held with the group to resolve the issue.

“Previous engagements and today’s meeting addressed issues regarding bridging claims and other matters. The Authority would like to reiterate that payment of bridging claims is an ongoing process and payments are disbursed as it is received from Marketers.

“It should be noted that The Authority has disbursed a total of N103,037,183,922.91 Naira between December 2021 to August 2022.

“Following the extensive deliberations between the parties, The Authority further commits to fast-track the settlement of all outstanding claims when received from marketers after due verification and reconciliation. NIPMF has agreed to work with the NMDPRA to ensure free flow of petroleum products nationwide”, it added.