Madar (Niamey) - Niger's Oil Minister Hamadou Tini on Wednesday, 21 October 2026 demanded an end to queues at filling stations during an afternoon visit, with Trade Minister Abdoulaye Seydou, to the Sorey fuel depot of state company Sonidep, the official Niger Press Agency (ANP) reported.
According to ANP, the ministers met Sonidep Director General Oumar Fatimata Marafa, her senior staff and site workers to find out where the bottleneck lay and why stations were not being supplied on time, insisting that the weekly delivery schedule be strictly followed. The director general ordered station owners to come and collect their quotas.
ANP said about 1,150,000 litres are delivered every day and stations are closed from 9 p.m. to 6 a.m., which the ministers said leaves enough time to resupply them. All stations must be able to serve customers from 6 a.m.
"This situation must stop. This is the last time we witness the scenes we saw at filling stations this morning," the oil minister said, calling it "unacceptable" and adding: "It is clear that stocks are available and tankers keep arriving at the Sorey site." The trade minister called for everyone's involvement, with Sonidep staff leading the way to restore the company's image.
The ministers said guidelines agreed with station owners on 19 October must be respected. Journal du Niger reported that the government threatened sanctions against those who fail to comply. Authorities had banned night-time fuel sales, and a 9 October cabinet meeting blamed supply disruption on structural and management constraints as well as informal channels and fraud, according to ANP.
