DPR proposes pipeline as better transportation for petroleum products

*A section of Nigeria’s aged and persistently vandalized petroleum pipeline network.

OpeOluwani Akintayo

Lagos — The Department of Petroleum Resources, DPR, has asked the federal government to look into use of pipeline as the best means of transporting petroleum products across the country.

The Acting Director, DPR, Mr. Shakur Rufai gave the advice in a statement on Friday.

Although plagued by vandalism, he said pipeline transportation would have been the best option in such a situation.

He said some of the trucks on Nigerian roads are not roadworthy, urging the government to proffer lasting solutions to the problem.

“The problem is not only about the trucks but the usage of the vehicles. Over 90 percent of all the freight movement in Nigeria is by road.

“The inland waterways are not tapped, which also contributes to the challenges. Our pipelines would have been a better option of product transportation but it has been challenged with vandalism”, he said.

“Land transportation currently is the most widely used mode to move products in Nigeria because of the challenges posed by the over 4,000 km network of pipelines in the country.

“Specifically, issues of integrity, vandalism, and insecurity of pipelines have led to continued reliance on tanker trucks to move petroleum products from one part of the country to another,” he added.

He said there have been a surge in petroleum tanker incidents in recent times, leading to various degrees of losses.

According to him, the persistent carnage from road haulage of petroleum products in Nigeria are growing at a very alarming rate.

He stressed on the need to review the downstream operations and discuss the possibility of providing solution to specific challenges currently facing the industry, adding the pressing need to ensure a safe petroleum product transportation system in the downstream sector and reduce accidents on Nigerian roads.

To this end, he said the DPR would continue to meet with the executives of Petroleum Tanker Drivers, PTD, Depot and Petroleum Product Marketers Association of Nigeria, DAPMAN, Independent Petroleum Product Marketers Association of Nigeria, IPMAN, the Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria, MOMAN, Lubricant Producers Association of Nigeria, LUPAN, Lagos State Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources, Federal and State Fire Services and the Federal Road Safety Corps, FRSC, to proffer solution on how to sanitise the downstream sector.