Edo State Governor, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, has made a case for the re-opening of the Benin Depot, managed by the Pipelines and Products Marketing Company (PPMC), a subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).
The governor, who was represented by the Commissioner for Minerals, Oil and Gas, Hon. Joseph Ugheoke, made the appeal during a visit to the office of the Area Manager, PPMC, in Warri, Delta State.
According to the governor, “The re-opening of the Depot in Benin City, Edo State, will address the shortage of supply of petroleum products and ease the difficulty in accessing petroleum products in the state.
“Edo State’s strategic location with road networks linking several parts of the country requires that petroleum products should be in ample supply as is reputed to be a hub of road transportation in Nigeria.”
He added, “The lingering scarcity of petroleum products experienced in the state in the past two months requires an urgent solution. The re-opening of the Depot in Benin will be strategic in resolving the problem.
“On our part, we are ready to collaborate with the PPMC/NNPC to ensure that Benin Depot is re-opened as its closure is affecting the supply and availability of the products in the state.”
Area Manager, PPMC, Warri Area, Engr. Dogara Gyet, assured the governor that the management of the PPMC, Warri Area, is working towards re-opening the Benin Depot for operations.
He said, “I was on a working visit to the Depot a week ago. I am deeply concerned about the shortage of petroleum products in Edo as the state records high volume of transportation activities with vehicles travelling through the state to other parts of the country.”
Controller, Operations, Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), Engr. Maynard Oriaifo, lamented the shortage of products in Edo State, noting that the daily sufficiency level for the state is between 800,000 to one million liters of petroleum products but the state hardly gets 500,000 liters.
