Despite a public announcement that trucks transporting more than 60,000 litres of hydrocarbon products would be prohibited from loading at depots and using federal roads from March 1, 2024, the Federal Government seems to have failed to enforce this order.
Industry operators said the government has shifted enforcement of the policy announced two weeks ago by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority to September.
However, a senior official of the NMDPR insisted that enforcement of the ban had started, although the tankers were still in operation.
But operators said the ban was postponed due to pressure from major oil marketers and stakeholders with a significant presence in the North.
The announcement, according to the authority, was a sequel to the meeting the authority held with stakeholders in the industry owing to the recurring accidents and explosions due to overloaded petroleum products trucks.
