FG BANS 60,000-LITRE FUEL TANKERS FROM NIGERIAN ROADS FROM MARCH 1. 23-02-25
By Sadiq Aminu The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has announced a ban on 60,000-litre fuel tankers from operating on Nigerian roads, effective March 1, 2025 to mitigate truck-in-transit incidents.
Speaking to journalists in Abuja, NMDPRA Executive Director, Distribution Systems, Storage, and Retailing Infrastructure, Ogbugo Ukoha, said the decision was made in response to the increasing number of road accidents involving heavy-duty petroleum tankers.
According to him, following deliberations involving key agencies including the Department of State Services (DSS), Federal Fire Service, Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), National Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO), National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) and Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON).
Others are, the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria (DAPPMAN), Major Energy Marketers Association of Nigeria ( MEMAN), Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), who agreed that from March 1, 2025, any truck with an axle load of more than 60,000 litres of hydrocarbon would not be allowed to load at any Products depot.
Ukoha also dismissed recent claims questioning the quality of fuel in circulation across the country, describing them as bogus, misleading, and unscientific.
He assured Nigerians that all imported and locally refined petroleum products meet strict regulatory standards before being released into the market.
The regulator vowed to ensure compliance with petroleum industry standards and specifications, stressing that recent social media claims about the quality of fuel products in circulation are baseless and should be disregarded.
NMPDRA executive director also disclosed that daily Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) supply, which averaged 66 million liters before subsidy withdrawal in May, 2023, now hovers around 50 million liters, with local refineries contributing below 50 per cent of total supply.