I first met Prince Billy Gillis-Harry in September last year. Both of us had taken the United Nigeria morning flight from Abuja to Port Harcourt, from where I would proceed by road to Yenagoa, Bayelsa State for the quarterly Standing Committee meeting of the Nigerian Guild of Editors. While we waited for our luggage on arrival in Port Harcourt, we exchanged pleasantries and discussed the Petroleum Retail Outlet Owners Association of Nigeria, PETROAN, a name I got to know for the first time that day. The moment he learnt I was travelling through PH, he started playing the host and eventually offered to take me to the popular Rumuokoro Park where he ensured I got a cab to Yenagoa.
It would take a whole year before we met again, this time at the national headquarters of PETROAN in Garki, Abuja. I had followed the unfolding events in the nation’s oil industry, especially the challenges posed by the abrupt removal of subsidy by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on 29th May, 2023 and how the industry and the people have grappled with the challenges it imposed on them. More importantly, I had more than a passing interest in the manner PETROAN which Gillis-Harry leads as National President has responded to the issue, emerging as a major player in the downstream oil industry, especially in the efforts to avert scarcity and ensure effective nationwide distribution of products.
Though PETROAN boasts a membership of over 7,000, not much is known of its activities. In a sector where retail outlet owners, in most cases, do not own the marketing franchises that operate in their outlets, their role in the industry has been marginal. However, at a period akin to a national economic crisis, they have suddenly emerged as the link to efficient distribution of petroleum products across Nigeria, thereby addressing longstanding challenges in the country’s energy sector.
Events of the penultimate week stimulated my interest in the organization and necessitated another meeting between Gillis-Harry and I, this time at the association’s headquarters in Abuja. Our discussion centred on the landmark purchase deal the association sealed with Dangote Refinery after the meeting with the management, led by the Managing Director, Mr. Devakumar V. G. Edwin on Monday 2nd December, 2024. Four days later, on 6th of December 2024, the group was hosted to another meeting by the Group Managing Director of the NNPC Limited, Engr Mele Kyari in his Abuja office where both parties also reached an agreement to facilitate seamless distribution of petroleum products across the country, going forward.
Dr. Gillis-Harry, who spearheaded those strategic partnerships and led the PETROAN negotiation team to both collaborative meetings, deserves commendation. To recognize the need for collaboration to tackle fuel distribution inefficiencies, is visionary; to initiate discussions with key industry stakeholders which culminated in those groundbreaking agreements with Dangote Refinery and NNPCL, two of the largest entities in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector, is no mean feat. Though he declined to make public the business terms and conditions, the fact remains that the general public will ultimately be the beneficiaries of any such deals, as it concerns product availability and affordability.
I didn’t know much of Prince Billy Gillis-Harry and PETROAN. Much of what I knew were connected to his past activities as the President of Port Harcourt Chamber of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (PHCCIMA) and as national vice president and chairman, oil and gas business sector, of Nigerian Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA). I have since realized his many other parts, especially his rich antecedents as Chief Executive Officer of Bilview Energy Limited, a company involved in geophysical and geological services in the oil and gas industry. The company has made landmark impressions in the oil recovery sector that has been a contentious issue in the Niger Delta region, and the same can be said of Gillis-Harry’s service in NACCIMA where he led, for many years, the South-South caucus in the group.
He has brought his vast experience in the industry to bear on his leadership of the association and the impact it has made since he assumed office. He has also succeeded spectacularly, in bringing PETROAN to become a critical player in Nigeria’s downstream petroleum sector. These strategic collaborations he has fostered so far in the fuel distribution sector are a testament to his ability to position PETROAN as a key enabler in Nigeria’s energy sector, a partnership that aims to address the perennial issue of fuel scarcity.
With a capacity to refine 650,000 barrels of crude oil per day, the Dangote Refinery, Africa’s largest refinery, promises to meet domestic fuel demand and reduce reliance on costly imports. On the other hand, PETROAN, representing over 7,000 independent fuel outlet owners, leverages its extensive retail network and plays a crucial role in the distribution network. By joining forces, these two entities are strategically positioned to stabilize the fuel supply chain and improve access to petrol for millions of Nigerians. This synergy is expected to eliminate bottlenecks in supply and curb the frequent fuel shortages that disrupt economic activities and burden citizens.
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Sheddy Ozoene, Editor-In-Chief of People&Politics, is Vice President of the Nigerian Guild of Editors
