By MICHAEL EBOH

Pipelines and Products Marketing Company, PPMC, is set to increase Nigeria’s petroleum products reserves by 80 million litres, with the construction of four new storage tanks and the rehabilitation of three existing tanks at its Mosimi Depot in Ogun state.

Speaking during the inspection of construction works at the depot, Mr. Haruna Momoh, Managing Director, PPMC, said the construction and rehabilitation of the tanks, which will be completed by August 2013, will help boost storage and prevent disruption in the supply of petroleum products in the country.

Momoh stated that the project was awarded to an indigenous firm in line with the local content policy of the Federal Government, adding that the government is satisfied with the quality and pace of work of the contractors thus far.

He disclosed that the project, approved by the Federal Government, is an initiative of the presidency to boost products’ supply and drive the National Strategic Stock Reserve policy.

The PPMC boss also noted that the supply of petroleum products across Nigeria is still robust, adding that it is committed to the mandatory 30 days national stock reserves.

He however, said the only challenge confronting the PPMC is in the area of distribution of the products, due to incessant vandalism, theft and sabotage.

He said, “We have to create additional capacity so that the public will not feel any impact whenever there is a disruption in supply. There are four new tanks under construction at the moment, while three other tanks are under rehabilitation.

“All we want to do, as much as possible, is to create more than enough holding stock at this Mosimi depot, so that from here, we can pump products to places like Satelite, Ore, Ibadan and Ilorin. The total completion date for the project is August 2013, however, some of the tanks, especially the ones under rehabilitation and refurbishment will come on stream before August.”

Momoh maintained that the transformation agenda of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, has made it mandatory for the PPMC to operate in line with best industry practices to ensure the achievement of its goal of becoming a world class oil and gas company.