Oil Marketers, CBN at Loggerheads Over Insufficient Forex for Fuel Importation

0
Oil Marketers, CBN at Loggerheads Over Insufficient Forex for Fuel Importation

The Central Bank of Nigeria and marketers of petroleum products are at loggerheads over the CBN’s forex policy which the marketers say has restricted their access sufficient foreign exchange for product importation.

The CBN said the complaint by the marketers about their inability to get enough foreign currencies, especially the United States dollar, for product importation in recent times, was strange, as the bank puts the marketers on its priority list of forex users and could not be denied needed funds for petroleum products importation.

However, the Executive Secretary, Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association, Mr. Olufemi Adewole, insisted that importers of refined petroleum products were grappling with forex shortage, which was affecting the implementation of product purchase agreements.

Muazu said if the country was in a crisis situation in terms of forex availability, the pressure would have been felt at the interbank foreign exchange market.

He said, “The marketers are on our priority list. It is very strange to us that they are making this complaint. We believe they are making a case out of no case.

“If they are having problems accessing credit; that is different. But as for forex, we don’t see the reason why they should complain of scarcity.”

Editor’s Picks  Tinubu urges Senate to endorse disengagement of Irukera

Last week, DAPPMA said the development had been brought to the notice of the CBN.

Marketers of petroleum products had said they were finding it very difficult to get dollars to finance import transactions; even with the naira equivalent readily available.