In a bid to combat fuel scarcity, the Federal Government has resolved to eliminate the middlemen in the distribution network of the product and sell directly to independent marketers.
The decision was reportedly taken at the committee stakeholders meeting held under the auspices of the presidency on Wednesday.
The meeting was chaired by Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr Ibe Kachikwu.
It was learnt that under the new arrangement, the intermediary Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association (DAPPMA) would be cut off and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) will sell petrol directly to the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN).
Before the new arrangement, DAPPMA supplied IPMAN with products.
The move, it was further learnt, would reduce the price of the product, allowing the independent marketers to sell at the government approved pump price of N145 per litre.
Although the NNPC was meant to import 50 percent of the product to complement the marketers, the regulatory body is the only importer at present because the marketers are scared of the N171 landing cost.