Toxic fuel: More questions than answers By Muyiwa Lucas

By last Thursday, the silence that enveloped the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, over the importation of “Off Spec” petrol into the country, had given way. The spirited effort of the NNPC to absolve itself of complicity in the importation saga also seemed not to be holding water given that some of the firms fingered by the company have come out to absolve themselves of any involvement in the importation of the 50,000 metric tons or 100 million liters of petrol. NNPC, for some years now, has been the sole importer of PMS into the country. This the company does by awarding contracts to its vendors for shipment of the commodity. The vendors in turn depending on their partnership with several oil merchants, contract them for shipment of the commodity into the country. But for those with a discerning and critical mind the question is at what point was there a slip in the supply chain for this product to get into the Nigerian market? This is because a look at the importation process of fuel shows that for every country, there are specifications for their PMS requirements. Usually, before a fuel-laden vessel leaves its port of embarkation, tests are carried out on the contents to be sure it meets the correct specification. Further tests are carried out on the high sea on the content and upon the arrival of the consignment in Atlas Cove jetty- which is off the coast of Lagos, the Nigerian Midstream Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), moves in to the vessel to test the conformity of the product with the Nigerian standard before it is released into the market. The highest methanol level for Nigeria is just about two percent. The controversial fuel has a 20 percent methanol level. Once the product meets the required standard, it is then sent to the depots for onward discharge to marketers through the various means of transportation available, including through the pipelines. But the question on stakeholders mind is at what point could the product have been contaminated? For some, what happened may not be contamination of the product in the real sense. This is because the vendor contracted to import the fuel already knows the standard requirement of the country. Therefore, bringing in something contrary from the requirement means it is “Off Spec”. Yet, others believe that there could have been compromise in the supply chain. Reason? Inspectors from the NMDPRA are expected to check the quality of the fuel upon landing in Atlas Cove before it is released into the various market. Insiders in the oil sector list the following as specifications for standard petrol for the Nigerian market: The erstwhile DPR now NMDPRA and Standard Organisation of Nigeria (SON) specifications state that petrol must be clear and bright; whereas the appearance of the controversial petrol was clearly hazy. SON/NMDPRA specifications state that petrol range must be between 0.7200-0.7800g/ml; whereas the imported product has a density of 0.7865g/ml. SON/NMDPRA specifications for petrol’s Full Boiling Point (FBP) is210 degC; whereas that of the controversial fuel is 211 degC. The imported petrol’s solvent washed gum content is 6.5mg/100ml; whereas SON specifies parameters of 4.0mg/100ml. The controversial petrol oxidation stability is 329 minutes, compared to the SON/NMDPRA specification of minimum 360 minutes levels. Another food for thought is why NNPC had to appoint few petroleum products marketing companies (some of them portfolio companies) to import petrol leaving out other more competent marketing firms? Also, why did NNPC cancel the PMS import intervention scheme process that involved NNPC, CBN, prequalified petroleum marketers and independent auditors, which former NNPC GMD, Dr. KachikwuIbe, put in place? This process was adjudged to have been very transparent. Going by the sample of the fuel as seen in a viral video, it is evident that the fuel could not have met all the parameters for the Nigerian market. A reliable source in SON said since the organisation has been chased out of the ports, all sorts of substandard products now enter into the country. Until an open investigation is done, there will remain more questions than answers.