Sopuruchi Onwuka
5 March 2008
Lagos — The incidence of contaminated fuel that has assumed crisis proportions has raised fresh fears about the multi billion naira ethanol based biofuel project of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) as findings show that the bad fuel in question had 10 percent ethanol.
Federal government Saturday directed petroleum products marketers in the country to immediately withdraw suspected contaminated petrol from the market, quarantine those in stock and recall those in transit.
It was a mystery how the import escaped the DPR inspection at discharge points since the requirement is for the importer to submit his certificate of quality two weeks ahead of arrival of the vessel, and submit to spot laboratory test as condition for discharge.
Government and marketers in the country had previous day launched off different investigations on the source of a specification of the premium motor spirit also called petrol circulating in the market and causing damage to plants and equipments.
The results of the investigation was not made public but inquiries by Sunday Champion showed that the ethanol laced petrol had scaled tests by Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) because of the similarity between the premium motor spirit and ethanol.
This, according to inside sources, led to handling the product for granted, until complaints from the public relating to the quality of petrol being dispensed from some outlets in the Lagos area compelled a revisit of the quality tests earlier conducted on the imported product.
It was gathered that the product had tested correct to specifications on arrival but the ethanol started separating from petrol as it got in contact with sediments and water in undergrounds tanks, forcing the components of the blend to alter their characteristics.
An expert in refining and fuel products at the DPR told our correspondent last night that ethanol abhors water, and any fuel with it remains vulnerable to sludge that normally accumulate in underground tanks if they are not cleaned for a long period of time.
Ordinarily, he said, petrol without ethanol would float above water since it has a lighter gravity and separates readily from and cannot blend with liquids like water.
Our sources confirmed that the importers of the products might not have known about the fuel was blended with 10 percent ethanol, otherwise, they said, the product would have been given specialized handling to avoid the problem at issue.
Meanwhile DPR officials are holding marathon meetings to ascertain the volume of the product still in circulation, the quantity in depots and how to withdraw them for repatriation.
The major problem facing the technical team responding to the problem, we gathered, is the discovery that some shipments of the bad fuel did not arrive their booked destinations and how to trace those diverted by dealers.
The vessel to take the ethanol blended product is expected to arrive the country today to start loading products already withdrawn into depots.
This, our sources said, has impacted on the availability of storage facilities for throughput of fresh imports to replace the stocks being withdrawn to avoid scarcity.
In response to this need, they said, government has called in the NNPC, Folawiyo and Nipco to provide depot facilities for new cargoes of fuel that would be imported to stabilize supplies in the domestic market as long as the cleansing lasted.
DPR said that the volume of the products to be with drawn from the domestic market would be almost double the amount of the ethanol blended petrol since most of the quantities taken by marketers have already blended with original stock in place, thereby altering their composition and making them vulnerable to contamination by underground sludge.
"The Department has ordered immediate quarantine of the affected products, stopped further distribution and also directed the recall of the products in-transit in all marketers' distribution chain," DPR which currently regulates the petroleum industry stated.
It restated government's determination to ensure supply of products that meet approved specifications.
The entire crises have raised questions on the workability of the fuel ethanol programme of the NNPC which would gulp several billions of Naira. Under the fuel ethanol project which draws example from Brazil, NNPC is investing heavily in mass production of cassava and sugar cane to produce the combustible which is derived from fermented sugar.
The corporation had proposed the blend of 10 percent ethanol to reduce pressure on available petrol in the country and ensure adequacy in the domestic market.
Former group boss of NNPC, Mr. Funso Kupolokun, had planned massive importation of ethanol and dedicated a storage depot at the Atlas Cove facility to kick off the experiment but the new administration of the federal government has not shown the enthusiasm to continue running the economy on imported fuel.
With the cargo of ethanol blend that has thrown the market into crisis, fears are high that the multi billion naira ethanol project will yield more trouble than fuel.
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