Scarcity of the Premium Motor Spirit, PMS, popularly called petrol has hit Port Harcourt and its environs.
This has caused untold hardship for businesses, which depend on PMS as marketers and Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, NUPENG, shut distribution of fuel in the state.
The situation since Monday has resulted in uncontrolled hike in petrol pump price, even as petrol consumers lament staying on stressful queues at the few dispensing filling stations for in most cases, the entire day and not being able to buy even at as high as N250 per liter pump price.
NUPENG President, Williams Akporeha, confirmed, yesterday, to Vanguard that the hardship the fuel in the state has caused, which is spilling over to neighbouring states was induced by the resolve to shut operations as the Rivers State government failed to respond to the union’s petition to within seven days intervene over alleged extortion and impounding of fuel tankers by security operatives in the state.
The situation is further worsened as Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, IPMAN, in the state also joined the disruption of fuel distribution as two factions of the association engaged in face-off over differences in the resolution of the ordeal tanker drivers suffer in the hands of multiple anti illegal fuel security teams chasing tankers loaded with fuel across the state.
As at yesterday, most NNPC filling stations and its franchise firms on the East West Road and some other areas, Total and other stations had no product to dispense even with huge price hike.
Some stations that have PMS to sell have pegged their prices at N240 and N300 per litre above the N162 pump price.
Mr. Gilbert Gift, a resident of Port Harcourt, who Vanguard met at a filling station in Port Harcourt regretted that the petrol at the moment has become difficult to get.
Gilbert noted that some stations were even hoarding the product to selling at higher prices when the situation worsens.
At the Port Harcourt Township NNPC Mega Station, one of a few outlets dispensing petrol, yesterday, distressed motorists and other fuel users in the long queues appealed to government and relevant authorities to resolve the induced price hike and scarcity of products in the state and environs.