The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) has urged the federal government to stop destroying illegal refineries in the Niger Delta creeks.
Chinedu Anyaso, the Chairman of IPMAN’s Enugu Depot Community, made the call on Tuesday, stressing that the infrastructure of the illegal refiners could serve the government more by increasing the refining capacity of the country.
The Ripple Nigeria reports that Anyaso suggested that while the government’s immediate plan is to get Nigeria’s local refineries working, the operators of the illegal refineries in the creeks should be brought into the national grid.
Anyaso urged the Minister of State for Petroleum, Heineken Lokpobiri, to table his suggestion to the government, as the illegal refineries will reduce the pressure on foreign exchange. “I expect that part of the Federal Government’s immediate plan is to get our local refineries working through the fixing of the four existing refineries and encouraging the establishment of modular refineries.
“Instead of chasing them and destroying their infrastructure, the government should call them to be part of the solution, at least in the short term while we wait for the main refineries to resume operations. This will reduce the pressure on foreign exchange,” he said.
