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Total flaws DPR’s closure of Ibafon Depot, restates integrity

By on November 10, 2015

Total Nigeria Plc has faulted the (DPR) over last Thursday’s closure of its Ibafon Depot based on an allegation that it was hoarding petrol due to the absence of loading at the time of it visit to the company’s depot.

Specifically, the management of the major petroleum marketing company stated that the facts of the matter were that on the day in question, loading activities at the Ibafon depot commenced after the sanitation exercise; adding that 17 trucks were programmed and assigned destinations as filled in the DPR coupon which were equally approved for loading by the DPR representative in Ibafon.

According to the company, at the time DPR officials were at the depot, access to the depot from the truck park was blocked, and trucks were unable to gain access to the depot thereby necessitating its officials’ efforts to liaise with the security agents and Petrol Tanker Drivers (PTD) to ensure that the road into Total Ibafon depot got cleared.

“It claimed that the measures were to enable programmed trucks gain entrance to load products.

It clarified further: “The facts concerning Total Nigeria Plc product saupply and distribution operations in the past weeks after extended periods of product outage are that the company completed the reception of: 1. 25, 311 metric tonnes of petrol in Apapa Terminal 1 and Joint Venture Depots on 2nd November 2015. 2. 11, 228 metric tonnes of petrol in Port Harcourt Depot on  November 2, 2015. 3. 10, 063 metric tonnes of PMS in Ibafon Depot on November 3, 2015.

“As soon as these ships had discharged, Total Nigeria Plc started to load out the product at full capacity to its retail outlets in order to meet the demands of the Nigerian public. On the day in question, Total was loading petrol at both our Apapa and Port Harcourt depots and trucks were lined up for loading at our Ibafon depot.

In the last five days, we have loaded 24 million litres from our Apapa, Port Harcourt and Ibafon depots combined. This PMS has been distributed to our stations nationwide and sold to the public at N87 per litre,” the company emphasised.

This is even as it restated that as a subsidiary of the Total Group – a world-class group of oil, gas and chemical companies, with operations in more than 130 countries, it has always operated within the ambits of the laws of the country and in line with international best practices and could not have engaged in any subversive or fraudulent acts capable of tarnishing its globally acknowledged core values and ethics to engage in the hoarding of petroleum products.

Total Nigeria Plc therefore described the decision by DPR to close its depot as unjust and unwarranted thereby necessitating the management’s decision to visit DPR’s management to clarify the situation.

The company restated its commitment to working with the relevant agencies to support government efforts in ensuring availability of petroleum products and assured the Nigerian public and relevant agencies of our total commitment and continued cooperation.

 

[ThisDay]