CITA petroleum, an indigenous aviation fuel handling company, has signed pact with Puma Energy in a bid to enhance Jet-A1 supply in the aviation industry.
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The new deal is expected to create supply and availability to tackle the perennial shortage and distribution logistics challenges affecting the nation’s aviation sector.
It will be recalled that the air travel sector has often been faced with aviation fuel shortage and scarcity. With lack of refining capability locally, the sector rely on imported product, which is subject to Foreign Exchange (FX) availability. The situation has pushed cost of aviation up, ranging from N205 to N270 per litre, depending on where the product is bought.
Chief Operating Officer at Cita petroleum, Olasimbo Betiku, observed that there are several problems bedeviling aviation fuel supply in the country, of which the top three are: the zero refining capacity, 100 per cent dependence on importation and the attendant problem of FX and product supply.
“It all means that we need foreign exchange and we all know that the FX basket of Nigeria is being challenged by the relatively low supply of dollars because ours is a monolithic economy. More so, globally, the dollar from crude is not coming as it is supposed to be. So, because the infrastructure and dollars are not there, we cannot get the product.
“What we have done as an indigenous company is to look at a global alliance that will help us solve the supply problem. We are confident that once the product is available, the logistics to make it go round will be sorted. So, we have sought partnership with Puma Energy,” Betiku said.
Puma energy is one of the biggest supplier of jet fuel in the world, with fingers in refining, retailing and other aspects of energy chain. Puma is also part of a parent company called Trafigora Group.
He added that the partnership is to make the product available in Nigeria and supply to all categories of airlines that are already scheduled for a networking forum this Friday in Lagos.
Betiku said further that the problem of the market has not been cost of aviation fuel as people often say.
Source: G Business
