Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Limited, Federal Government and Dangote have tricked Nigerians into a new pump price regime in which NNPC’s filling stations in Lagos have adjusted the price of petrol to N855 amid ongoing fuel scarcity just as Nigeria Employers Consultative Association described the new hike in pump price of petrol as worrisome and unfair. The Director-General of NECA, Adewale-Smatt Oyerinde, said this in a statement while reacting to the new hike in pump price of PMS on Tuesday in Abuja. NNPC retail stations in Lagos are selling fuel between N865 to N897 per litre from N568 per litre. This is coming after the recent admission by the NNPC that its capacity to supply petrol to local marketers is jeopardised by its debt obligations to international oil traders—amounting to approximately $6billion. The Federal Government has how ever reacted to the allegation of increase in the price of premium motor spirit, also known as petrol. The government has dismissed reports that the Ministry of Petroleum has ordered the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) to sell fuel at N1,000 per litre, above the approved pump price.
In a statement signed by Nnemaka Okafor and made available to newsmen on Tuesday, the government described the reports as “outright falsehoods” and “baseless fabrications” aimed at sowing discord and confusion in the oil industry. The statement noted that the Federal Government has never interfered with petroleum pricing with NNPCL, let alone give directives for price increments. “There was never a time FG interfered with petroleum pricing with NNPCL, let alone give directives for price increment,” the statement said. But Dangote said yesterday that as soon as his company finalises modalities with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), the product will hit the market. He said “Our PMS (Premium Motor Spirit) can be in filling stations within the next 48 hours depending on NNPCL”. Asked to speak on the pricing of petrol from his refinery, Dangote said, “It is an arrangement which is designed and approved by the Federal Executive Council led by His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. “As soon as it is finalised, which he (Tinubu) is pushing, once we finish with NNPC, it can be today, it can be tomorrow, we are ready to roll into the market.” He declared that “it’s a celebration day” for Nigerians and assured all citizens that they “are now going to have good petrol while the engines of your vehicles will last longer. You will not be having an engine issue, which a lot of us were having. It won’t happen at all”.
In the past few weeks, fuel queues have been a common sight in major cities across Nigeria, leaving citizens struggling to obtain fuel. “NNPC Ltd. Has acknowledged recent reports in national newspapers regarding the company’s significant debt to petrol suppliers. This financial strain has placed considerable pressure on the Company and poses a threat to the sustainability of fuel supply. “In line with the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), NNPC Ltd. Remains dedicated to its role as the supplier of last resort, ensuring national energy security. We are actively collaborating with relevant government agencies and other stakeholders to maintain a consistent supply of petroleum products nationwide,” Soneye said.
Fuel scarcity has returned to major cities like Lagos and Abuja, with vehicles seen queuing at the few filling stations selling petrol. This comes as NNPC admits owing oil traders a $6.8 billion fuel subsidy debt, which some believe is contributing to the supply challenges. Major roads in Lagos and Abuja were noticeably empty, as observed by Nairametrics, due to motorists lacking petrol to move around. Even NNPC-owned filling stations were completely shut, with some motorists waiting in front, hoping the stations would eventually open. The product was sold yesterday at prices ranging from N840 to N1,000 at various locations across the country. Nigeria Employers Consultative Association described the new hike in pump price of Premium Motor Spirit also known as petrol as worrisome and unfair. The Director-General of NECA, Adewale-Smatt Oyerinde, said this in a statement while reacting to the new hike in pump price of PMS on Tuesday in Abuja.
Recall that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited said that with effect from September 3, the new pump price of PMS would be N897 per litre. According to Mr Oyerinde, the new pump price of petrol is not only worrisome but also unfair. He said, “We had expected that the government would leverage on the momentum created by the completion of the Dangote refinery and the planned commencement of operation of the Port-Harcourt refinery. This is in order to clear the obvious self-inflicted pain on Nigerians and progressively reduce the pump price of petrol. This seems not to be the case. This new pump price could be seen as making Nigerians to pay for the crass inefficiency in the NNPCL.’’ He said that rather than address the fundamentals that had made Nigeria a net importer of petrol, even when we have four refineries, the government continued to inflict pain on Nigerians. According to him, the government is advertently contributing to the increase in cost of doing business. The NECA DG said, “We advise that government should have a rethink and do all that is necessary to address the continuous impoverishment of Nigerians and incapacitation of organised businesses.’’
