The Terminal Manager of the Port Harcourt Depot, Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Mr. Molokwu Chike, has revealed ongoing challenges in evacuating petroleum products despite their availability at the depot.
Speaking to journalists during a guided tour of the Port Harcourt Refinery and depot loading bay in Eleme over the weekend, Chike stated that tanker drivers have been reluctant to load products.
“We have been begging the tanker drivers to come and load petroleum products, but they refused. After much appeal, they finally agreed to come and load the products. Today is a weekend, which is why they are not turning up,” Chike explained.
Highlighting the depot’s capacity, Chike noted that the facility operates 11 functional loading arms, with three currently in use, capable of loading three trucks in 15 minutes.
“If you give us 100 trucks today, we can evacuate them in less than five hours. Evacuation of petroleum products is not our problem; it’s the tanker drivers’ problem. We have been pleading with them since yesterday, and they accepted this morning to come and load products,” he added.
Chike emphasized the efficiency of the loading process, stating, “In summary, we can discharge about 45 to 50 trucks in 2 to 3 hours. The operational principles here ensure high efficiency, and the capacity of our loading arms is exceptional.”
Meanwhile, the Chairman of the Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN), Billy Grills Harry, confirmed that his members are ready and willing to purchase products from the Port Harcourt refinery.
As the depot awaits full cooperation from the tanker drivers, the management continues to assure Nigerians of its operational readiness to meet product distribution demands efficiently.
