A major fuel strike in Nigeria which left domestic airlines grounded, gas stations dry, and banks closing early has been resolved.
Fuel wholesalers had stopped distributing petroleum, claiming the government owed them $1 billion. Government officials said the wholesalers had been fully paid.
The agreement was reached after talks with the finance minister, Danladi Fasali from the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association told the BBC.
The shortage has had an impact on the country’s aviation and banking sectors.
Peter Akpatason, recent president of the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) and now a lawmaker, said the fuel distributors felt pressured to end their strike.
He said that if they didn’t, Nigerians would hold them responsible for any collapse of the economy.
The party of President-elect Muhammadu Buhari, who is due to take office on Friday, had accused the outgoing government of “sabotage” for failing to deal with the crisis.
Meanwhile Nigeria’s Federal Government has recorded a loss of over 2,000 megawatts in its national grid due a shortage of gas supply to the thermal plants. Currently, only 5 out of 23 power plants are generating electricity.
The loss was also triggered by industrial actions by workers in the oil and gas industry.
Nigerian fuel marketers have agreed to resume supplying gasoline and diesel to end the shortage that has also affected telecommunications, banking and aviation sectors.
Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation says that repair works are being intensified to resolve the problem.
