Petroleum product scarcity: a review of the supply and distribution of petroleum products in Nigeria

Abstract

Nigeria ranks high among the comity of oil producers both at the world level and among the OPEC eleven. It is, therefore, paradoxical that the supply of all petroleum products is erratic and has declined sharply in the recent past. This paper thus reviews the petroleum product supply and distribution systems in the country to ascertain the extent to which the system may have contributed to the present product scarcity in Nigeria and, by extension, identify the causes of the present regime of petroleum product scarcity. The paper observes that the network density and connectivity of petroleum product distribution pipelines are low and both indicators consequently show the inadequacy/deficiency of the network in ensuring an efficient distribution system. The supply mode, on the other hand, has, over the years, demonstrated its inability to guarantee adequate supply due to factors including sabotage, vandalism, banditry and poorly maintained infrastructure. Further, the federal government and the major and independent marketers could not sustain the importation of petroleum products because of the shortfall between the landed cost of imported products and their selling prices in Nigeria, which made the business unprofitable. Finally, the paper examines the withdrawal by the federal government of subsidies on the price of petroleum products consumed locally. All the above factors together occasioned increases in the cost of products. In conclusion, this paper supports the call for the privatization of refineries and the depot/pipeline system as a viable option to end the supply problems. Copyright 2006 Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries.

Pipeline interdiction and bridging in Nigeria: is a modification to the spatial connectivity matrix model required?

“…However, due to the paucity of data and lack of updated research in most developing nations (Lawler, 2003) such as Nigeria, this preliminary work is yet unable to sufficiently draw an evidence-based conclusion as to whether the increasing trend in the number of oil tankers on Nigerian roads results from a lack of spatial connectivity caused by pipeline interdiction. Though, it has been implied that refinery underutilization is a key factor (Akpoghomeh and Badejo, 2006). Nevertheless, it is logical to expect that the large number of oil tankers and other trucks contribute to the number of accident fatalities and injuries on the Nigerian roads.…”

“…In summary, a simple loss of connectivity in the downstream pipeline system renders much of the system broken and leads to a breakdown in supply (Akpoghomeh and Badejo, 2006).…”

Evaluating interdiction of oil pipelines at river crossings using Environmental Impact Assessments

“…This linearly‐weighted approach appears to provide a more useful analytical basis in contrast to the usual raw numbers published (e.g. Akpoghomeh and Badejo ; Aroh et al . ), particularly when drawing comparisons between pipeline interdiction cases in Nigeria and other parts of the world such as Europe, Canada, USA, Russia and the former Soviet Union.…”

“…). The data were also dated and sourced differently: (a) national data (1993–1998) were retrieved from Akpoghomeh and Badejo (); (b) regional data (1999–2012) were retrieved from NNPC (, ).…”

The integrated network model of pipeline, sea and road distribution of petroleum product

“…Hence, this paper aims to optimize the distribution of petroleum products in the downstream supply industry in Nigeria assuming that the sector is deregulated and operated by private companies. It was evaluated that the network density and pipeline connectivity for the distribution of petroleum finished products are low thus creating room for inefficiency in the supply of these products to the eventual end users through the necessary intermediate actors [5]. Therefore, the model we develop in this study is aimed to provide answers to several questions such as "which pipeline connections are crucial for the network and what should be their capacity", "what should be the capacity of depots" and "which pipeline connections can be treated as back-up connections when a sabotage is occurred in the network."…”