Members of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) in Borno and Yobe states, have called for government’s intervention to ensure the payment of N6 billion in outstanding bridging claims by their members.

Secretary of the association, Alhaji Abbas Yakubu, made the call on Friday, in Maiduguri, after an emergency meeting of the association.

Yakubu said their members were now worried over the accumulated claims and confused over how to get their money, particularly following the scrapping of the Petroleum Equalization Fund (PEF).

He said many of their members could no longer bring fuel, adding that out of over 400 members only about 30 were still in business.

On the current fuel scarcity being experienced in Borno, Yakubu said something needed to be done about the increase in fuel price at the depots, if marketers were to sustain their lifting of the products.

“We cannot continue to operate at a lost,” Yakubu said.

He explained that they used to buy PMS (petrol) at the cost of N148.11 per litre which has now increased to N159, while AGO (diesel) that used to cost N240 per litre was now N360.

“More worrisome is the centralisation of products via the customer express services that makes the product distribution extremely cumbersome and very difficult for a marketer to be allocated the product.

“Transportation of Petroleum products from southern depots to the north have become unprofitable as the price of diesel has increased to unimaginable levels, alongside the high cost of spare parts and other logistics.

“Transporting products from Lagos to Maiduguri cost between N700 000 to N750,000 for diesel, as against N400,000 to N450,000 last year.

“There is also the serious problem of bad roads, particularly the Bida – Minna road that is now a death trap.

“The refusal of the PEF to increase freight rates, in accordance with present realities coupled with non-payment of outstanding seven months bridging claims has suffocated our capital.

“We solicit the intervention, assistance and understanding of all stakeholders,” Yakubu said.