Nigerians agonize as petrol sells above N1,000 per litre

Nigerians across the country are groaning as the cost of Premium Motor Spirit (Petrol) has hit over N1000 per liter in many parts of the country.

This comes as Dangote Refinery offers the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited a lifeline to exit the petrol importation burden.

According to the Spokesperson of Dangote Group, Anthony Chiejina, on Monday, the Dangote petrol would ease endless fuel queues, foster the country’s productivity and ensure energy security.

“The Refinery has started producing Premium Motor Spirit. When it gets to commercial quantity and hits the market, you will know”, he says.

“The aim is to ensure that the product is available and affordable, so that Nigerians will not continue to queue endlessly losing man-hours of work.

“All the man-hours lost, productivity lost due to fuel queues, people don’t have to queue. You get your fuel as at when you want it. You can imagine the level of productivity the country will gain”, he added.

Dangote Petrol processing kick-off comes amid the anxiety created by NNPCL’s admission of financial strain over sustainable supply costs and indebtedness to oil suppliers amounting to over $6 billion.

The state-owned company’s spokesperson, Olufemi Soneye said at the weekend that, “This financial strain has placed considerable pressure on the company and poses a threat to the sustainability of fuel supply”.

This implies that NNPCL is constrained to the under-recovery cost of petrol, otherwise known as subsidy as import bills rise.

The NNPCL’s admittance of financial strain is generating reactions among stakeholders and public analysts which further compounded the crisis in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector.

Reacting to the development, the President of Independent Petroleum Marketers of Nigeria, IPMAN, Abubakar Maigandi urged Nigerians not to panic over NNPCL’s admittance of financial indebtedness and anxiety over the pump price hike.

“Nigerians should not panic about the position of financial strain by NNPCL. It is normal for businesses to be indebted.

“We are working with NNPCL to see that the product is available for Nigerians.

“If there is a price increment, NNPCL would have announced, same with the availability of the product”, he said.

When asked about the cost marketers are buying petrol, he said, “those who obtain their product through the NNPCL sell at N650 to N700 per liter and those who get through the private depot owners sell at N920.

“Marketers who carry the product, especially those who are carrying from Lagos State to Maiduguri in Borno or Calabar, Cross State to Maiduguri, will be above N920 because they have to add their transportation cost and profit margin.

“We want NNPCL to give petrol to our members directly.”

Fuel Queues Persist

A check around the nation’s Capital and it was observed that only a few filling stations were dispensing fuel with long queues.

Only NNPCL and a few other retail outlets were seen dispensing fuel at N617 per litre along Kubwa Expressway. RainOil in Gwarimpa sold at N720 per litre.

In Nasarawa, Niger and Kogi states, the product was sold for between N850 to N1,100 per liter on Monday.

Delta, Bayelsa, Cross Rivers, Imo, Enugu and Abia state residents got petrol between N870 to N1000 per liter.

“Presently, the products are not available as they should be. The products are not sufficiently available because some marketers are still waiting for the supply.

“We are waiting for a response from Dangote Refinery on PMS loading. For now, we have not gotten any written documents.

“If the directive comes, we will direct our marketers to go there for Petrol”, Maigandi says.

As a solution, the leader of IPMAN said, “The government should fast-track the CNG program to provide a better alternative for Nigerians.”

Nigeria’s oil, gas sector poorly managed under Tinubu – Madaki

The Managing Partner, BBH Consulting and Convener, Public Interest Advocacy Network, PIAN, Barr. Ameh Madaki, on his part, said that the country’s oil and gas sector was being poorly managed under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s regime.

He urged that the government needed to act fast to address the challenges the sector faced before a complete collapse.

“I must reiterate that the Oil and Gas industry in Nigeria is very poorly managed.

“Recently, NNPCL published a N3.3 trillion ‘profit’, which informed analysts wrote off as paper profits.

“What is happening in NNPCL is similar to the scandal in Enron where opaque and ingenious accounting led to the collapse of the largest consulting firm in the world at the time.

“Until professional organizations begin to know that there are consequences for their actions, Nigeria will continue to wallow in the current situation.

“NNPCL’s admission that they have a debt overhang of over $6 billion in a scenario where Nigerians are groaning under the weight of exorbitant petroleum products prices across board, which has driven up the prices of everything else in the country is unconscionable.

“The Government needs to act fast by cleaning the Augean Stable and restoring professionalism and transparency in the running of this all-important sector of the Nation’s economy”, he said.

He further said that another fuel price increase shows that the government is careless about the plight of Nigerians.

Fuel hike laughable if entire cost isn’t considered – Uche Okoro

Uche Okoro of Energy Development & Data Accuracy Centre (EDDAC), London disclosed that any fuel price hike that doesn’t take into cognizance the entire costs across the value chain will amount to nothing.

“There are two things involved: either that the end-to-end cost of petrol, up to the retail point, including sustainable profit, has been fully costed and found to be accommodated within N1,117 per liter.

“Otherwise, it will amount to a laughable wacky idea. If the entire value chain is not costed into that price, then, the government pronouncement will only be possible if the FGN is passing money underneath the table, to pay a percentage of the retail loss component as a form of subsidy component of the holistic Nigeria retail fuel economy.

“Anything outside of a monetary backup from the government for pegging the price of an international commodity at a given price above N1,117 per liter is an economic logic and misnomer.

“There is presently a rampaging inflation in the country, with the dollar running amok. In such a volatile climate, it will be foolhardy to peg the price of a volatile spot international commodity like petroleum products. Let’s watch and see what happens in the next few days.

Expand CNG scheme, fast – Chinedu Amah

Chinedu Amah, the CEO of Spark Online, a power sector investment forum said the federal government must act fast on the implementation of Compressed Natural Gas, a better alternative to Petrol.

“Nigeria has the solutions but fails to implement them, I’ll share a few short thoughts:

“The CNG program needs to be expanded and expanded fast. With this, states can regulate the cost of transportation downwards, easing the burden on the people.

“The states must also implement a public transportation master plan that integrates bigger buses that can carry more people.

“In the power sector, states must as a matter of urgency introduce under-metering for commercial buildings and multiple-use residential properties.

“Service providers can integrate solar to support under-served feeders and increase supply time above average for the 75 percent or so for the electricity market not served under Band A.

“Financial institutions should be empowered to provide single-digit loans for players in 1&2 to accelerate funding for both transportation and clean energy solutions.

“The simple goal is to quickly cut demand for fuel and reduce how much Nigerians have to spend on transportation and power.