The Federal Government appears to have failed to enforce the order to ban trucks with a capacity exceeding 60,000 litres from loading petroleum products at depots and traveling on federal roads.
Industry operators said the enforcement of this policy has been postponed to September 2025, according to The Punch.
This delay has raised concerns among industry operators about the government’s commitment to implementing these safety measures.
A senior NMDPRA official maintained that the ban’s enforcement had begun, despite the continued operation of the tankers.
However, operators argued that the ban was postponed due to pressure from major oil marketers and key stakeholders, particularly those with significant interests in the North.
On February 20, 2025, the NMDPRA announced a ban on trucks exceeding a 45,000-litre capacity, limiting the maximum allowable tanker size to curb accidents. This decision followed a series of fatal petrol tanker incidents that claimed 493 lives over three years.
According to the authority, the ban resulted from discussions with industry stakeholders, addressing concerns over frequent accidents and explosions caused by overloaded fuel trucks.
Despite the ban, tanker drivers have continued loading the prohibited 60,000-litre trucks.
A marketer at a private depot in Lagos, Olatide Jeremiah, confirmed that these trucks were still being allowed to pick up products.
He said, “So what happened is that some major marketers like AA Rano, AYM Shafa and others have a strong presence in the North and use heavy trucks to transport their products. So these marketers went back to NMDPRA after the ban announcement and told them that the time frame was too short and they should be given more time.
“This made the authority shift the implementation to October. The authority agreed based on that ground. The outlook of this decision also implies that the ban may not be effected at all.”
However, NMDPRA spokesperson George Ene-Ita strongly denied the claim, insisting that enforcement of the ban had already begun.
He said, “The implementation of the maximum 60,000-litre trucking of PMS out of depots and tank farms in Nigeria was effective as of March 1, 2025. And all marketers and dealers are strictly complying with this NMDPRA directive.”
Another private depot marketer and the National Association of Road Transport Owners confirmed that 60,000-litre trucks continued loading beyond the announced ban date.
A marketer at A.A. Rano depot in Ijegun Waterside, Lagos, who chose to remain anonymous for safety reasons, claimed the policy was not enforced due to lobbying by sector investors.
He said, “Yes, we are loading 60,000-litre trucks, but for any truck that exceeds that capacity, like 61,000 litres, 66,000 or 70,000 litres, we are not loading that.
“From the last meeting we held, which the NMDPRA attended. They asked us to continue loading the 60,000-litre tankers till October 2025. This is because of the time frame given to them. We are loading steadily.”
After refusing to provide a picture of the loading process, he explained, “Let me paint a clear picture: in the petroleum and trucking business, investment is key. Those trucks were bought with bank loans that require weekly and monthly repayments.”
“Let me give a clear picture: when it comes to petroleum business and trucking business, investment is key. Those trucks are products of loans taken from banks, and they are paid back weekly and monthly.
“So the amount of business property that would have been lost is too much. They would enter bad debt. Maybe the authority should have gotten back to the media and informed them that it was shifted till October. But we are loading steadily here.”
Similarly, the NARTO president, Yusuf Othman, confirmed the non-enforcement of the ban, stating, “We will continue to work on the plan, as it has been put on hold till October, which is the last quarter of the year.
“The impact of the plan is that the volume that we supply will reduce, and we have over 2,000 trucks that are above 60,000 litres, and with these trucks, it means we have over 2,000 drivers.
“So over 2,000 drivers will be out of jobs. But we are still talking with the Federal Government to see what can be done.”
