In the northeast of Nigeria, nearly 1,800 gas stations closed due to a smuggling issue

The local head of the petroleum marketer’s group claimed on Monday that around 2,000 gas stations in northeastern Nigeria were closed in protest against an anti-smuggling operation that targeted particular operators, forcing drivers to purchase gasoline on the black market.

According to Dahiru Buba, the chairman of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) for the states of Taraba and Adamawa, gas stations ceased operations when the Nigeria Customs Service closed some fuel outlets and impounded tanker trucks on the grounds that they were suspected of smuggling fuel into Cameroon, a neighboring country.

For years, low-cost gasoline smuggled from Nigeria has been the main source of income for black market fuel merchants in Cameroon, Benin and Togo.

That black market commerce collapsed when Nigeria eliminated its gasoline subsidy last year, but since June 2023, Nigeria has capped the price of the commodity, even if its currency has sharply declined. As a result, the product is now once again cheaper.

Following IPMAN’s protests, Customs initially impounded a few of the association’s tanker tankers under “Operation Whirlwind” and then released them. According to Buba, however, more trucks were confiscated and a number of gas stations were closed, which prompted the operators to close their locations collectively in protest.

He added that more than 1,800 stores had stopped operations. “We wrote to them (Nigeria Customs) again but there were no responses, that is why we decided to go on strike,” he said.

“This is our business, and we cannot be quiet when our members are treated this way.”

According to Taraba and Adamawa Customs spokeswoman Mangsi Lazarus, tanker trucks were impounded because they were being used to transport gasoline.

Black market dealers swiftly capitalized on the shortages in Adamawa’s capital city of Yola, selling gasoline for 1,400 naira ($0.9459) per liter instead of the 650–750 naira it was selling for at the pump.