The Department of
Petroleum Resources
(DPR) has directed major and independent marketers to submit their licence renewal application so as to facilitate early issuance for the 2005/2006 operating year in order to avoid suspensions of operation.
The zonal controller of the DPR, Mr Mordecai Dantani Baba Ladan, stated this yesterday at the 2004 DPR/Marketers meeting in Kaduna.
According to Mr Ladan, licences of marketers with dilapidated stations operating with substandard facilities would not be renewed.
He said that all major projects in the oil industry must be subjected to Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA), including Product Filling Stations with com-bined capacity above 20,000 litres, pointing out that the EIA must be carried out by competent consultants duly accredited by the DPR.
He lamented that the industry must adhere to world standards, pointing out that operators of filling stations must ensure that they have the necessary fin-ancial and technical capacity in conformity with enviro-nmental and community relations obligations.
He added that marketers must display well-illuminated price boards at each retail outlet as part of compliance procedure in order to add value to customers’ satis-faction.
The zonal controller said that recent survey indicated that some operators still use temporary materials such as chalk boards, slate cardb-oards, rusty scrap metals, and even chose to ignore the order, thereby giving rise to suspicions of sharp practices by the marketers.
He commended the marketers for the various roles they play to keep the spirit of the deregulation process on course.
He declared that a lot of challenges still lie ahead towards the transformation and repositioning of the petroleum downstream sector for sustainable economic development in the country.
Mr Ladan warned erring marketers to desist from deliberate cheating either by refusing to display prices, or refusal to adjust pump readings properly or deliberate adjustment of dispensing pumps to maximise profits, pointing out that the 59 marketers caught last year were punished according to their offences as some of them have their operating licences suspended and stat-ions shut down for period ranging from four weeks to six months respectively.
The DPR/Marketer’s annual meeting, serves as a forum for deliberations on issues on the regulation of the down stream sector of the petroleum between the regulators and the operators.
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