The presidency has revealed that an impressive $7.5 billion is being saved annually from funds previously allocated to fuel subsidy following its removal. Sunday Dare, the Special Adviser on Media and Public Communications to President Tinubu, shared this in a bulletin detailing some of the president’s achievements in the oil sector. Dare highlighted key milestones, including five new executive orders signed by the president expected to unlock $2.5 billion in oil and gas investments. Another point on the list was the introduction of two pricing tiers for petroleum products — one by trucks and the other by sea. “Positive notes from President Bola Tinubu’s oil and gas sector reforms. Saved Nigeria $7.5 billion previously spent on oil subsidy.
“Five new Presidential Executive Orders to immediately unlock $2.5 billion immediately in new oil and gas investments. New two pricing tires for those transporting via the shop and those transporting via trucks,” the report shows in part. Following his assumption of office on May 29, 2023, President Bola Tinubu announced the removal of the popular but costly fuel subsidy. In his inaugural speech, the president declared that the subsidy was “gone.” This announcement led to a significant increase in the price of PMS, rising from N180 to about N620 per liter, and soaring again a year later to approximately N1,200 at retail filling stations.
The removal of the subsidy has indeed helped the country save scarce resources that could have been allocated to critical sectors such as education, health, or infrastructure. However, while there is no concrete data on how much the government has saved from full deregulation of the downstream sector, various figures have been speculated. In a recent interview, the Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, claimed that the country has saved no less than N20 trillion since the subsidy removal. His statement sparked widespread reactions online, with many questioning why, if such savings have been realized, the government still seeks to borrow $2.2 billion to address short fall in 2024 budget
Fuel subsidy removal saves Nigeria $7.5bn annually – Presidency
