Petrol price Hike: Queues Resurface At Filling Stations

Oil marketers have declared that filling stations should not be blamed for the hike in the pump prices of Premium Motor Spirit, popularly called petrol, as queues for the commodity surfaced in various locations on Saturday.

Many filling stations in Lagos, Ogun, Abuja, and Port Harcourt, among others, were closed on Saturday, as dealers explained that they were monitoring developments to make adequate price adjustments.

Sunday PUNCH reported that petrol prices had risen to between N1,050 and N1,150/litre depending on the area of purchase, following the hike in the cost of the commodity by the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and various depot owners.

Dealers confirmed that PMS prices would continue to rise since the major component in fuel production, crude oil, has been on the upward swing lately.

On Friday, there was an increase in the price of petrol produced by the Dangote refinery. The $20bn plant raised its PMS from N899/litre to N955/litre at its loading gantry.

This led to a hike in the pump prices of the commodity by retail stations that dispensed the product on Saturday, while many others shut their outlets to monitor developments.

“There is no scarcity of product, rather filling stations are closed because dealers are observing developments and are careful not to run at a loss,” a major marketer, who spoke in confidence due to lack of authorisation to speak on the matter, stated.

The dealer Insisted that marketers should not be blamed for the hike in petrol prices, stressing that the situation was due to the rise in the cost of crude oil.

Meanwhile, as many stations stayed closed on Saturday, the few that dispensed petrol sold it above N1,000/litre in Lagos, while those that dispensed below N1,000/litre, such as MRS, had long queues.

The MRS filling stations in the Alakpere and Ojodu Berger areas of Lagos that dispensed petrol at the N935/litre price earlier agreed between the oil marketing firm and the Dangote refinery had massive queues of motorists on Saturday.

Commenting on the issue, the Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria said filling stations should not be blamed for the changes In the prices of PMS.

PETROAN attributed the increase in PMS prices to the rise in the cost of crude oil in the international market.

It said the benchmark for oil prices, Brent crude, stood at $80.85/barrel, while WTI oil and the OPEC basket were priced at $78.82 and $81.72/barrel, respectively.

Prices were said to have risen to a four-month high following the introduction of new US sanctions against Russian oil.

The National President of PETROAN, Dr Billy Gillis-Harry, quoting Section 205 of the Petroleum Industry Act, stated that petrol prices are determined by market forces, indicating that the government and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited no longer set petrol prices.

As a result, he noted that refinery operators in Nigeria will respond accordingly to changes in crude oil prices.

Gillis-Harry noted that increasing crude oil prices would inevitably affect domestic costs.

“It’s no longer funny; even retail outlet owners are affected by this up-and-down movement of prices. It affects our business,” he noted.

Gillis-Harry emphasised that PETROAN members cannot buy petrol at a higher price and sell it at a lower price.

As a result, he noted that refinery operators in Nigeria will respond accordingly to changes in crude oil prices.

Gillis-Harry noted that increasing crude oil prices would inevitably affect domestic costs.

“It’s no longer funny; even retail outlet owners are affected by this up-and-down movement of prices. It affects our business,” he noted.

Gillis-Harry emphasised that PETROAN members cannot buy petrol at a higher price and sell it at a lower price.

“Our selling rate always reflects our buying rate. Our members shouldn’t be blamed for the current increase; it’s an external factor,” he added.

To mitigate the impact of PMS pricing in Nigeria, PETROAN advocated privatising government-owned refineries and encouraging competition in the downstream sector.

He maintained that the privatisation of refineries will not only reduce the financial burden on the government but also increase efficiency and productivity in the sector, saying, this will lead to a more stable and competitive market, ultimately benefiting the Nigerian consumer.”

“In addition, PETROAN is calling on the government to provide a more conducive business environment for retail outlet owners, including access to affordable financing and infrastructure development.

“By doing so, the government can help reduce the costs associated with running a retail outlet, thereby making petrol more affordable for Nigerians,” Gillis-Harry said.

In a statement by PETROAN spokesperson, Joseph Obele, on Saturday, the association emphasised the need for strategic collaboration and investment in Nigeria’s petroleum sector at the inaugural meeting of the Petroleum Industry Stakeholders’ Forum, which brought together key stakeholders from the government, regulatory bodies, and the private sector in Abuja.

PETROAN’s National President, Gillis-Harry, reiterated the association’s commitment to supporting initiatives that promote the growth and sustainability of Nigeria’s petroleum sector.

PETROAN pledged to add value to the stakeholders’ forum, contributing to shaping the industry’s future and addressing its challenges.

He commended President Bola Tinubu’s decision to fully deregulate the industry, unify foreign exchange rates, and implement policies “that unlock the full potential of our petroleum sector.”

PETROAN, in a position paper submitted to pressmen at the forum, said the Nigeria oil and gas sector recorded significant milestones that shaped Nigeria’s oil and gas downstream sector in 2024.

“As a critical stakeholder, PETROAN, comprising membership with over 6,900 retail outlets across Nigeria, played a crucial role in ensuring the smooth distribution of value to Nigeria. Therefore, it is correct to say that PETROAN was instrumental in the oil and gas sector’s achievements

“However, to reinforce previous achievements, PETROAN recommends the following: privatisation of Nigerian-owned refineries; establishment of a robust monitoring and evaluation framework to track the performance of downstream operators; investing in infrastructure development, addressing cross-border smuggling; and prioritising local refineries’ access to crude oil.” 

Petrol Price Has Rendered N70, 000 Minimum Wage Useless — NLC

The Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, said Thursday it would meet with the federal government on how workers could survive the recent hike in the pump price of petrol.

According to the labour movement, the current price of petrol has eroded the gains of the yet-to-be implemented N70,000 new national minimum wage. President of NLC, Joe Ajaero, who disclosed this at the opening ceremony of a two day workshop on “Minimum Wage Implementation Workshop, Southern Zone, with the theme ‘Strategies for Effective Implementation of the 2024 National Minimum Wage Act, in Lagos,” insisted that organised labour was deceived by President Bola Tinubu into accepting the N70,000 minimum wage to forestall petrol price increase .

He advised the government to address the excruciating hunger, poverty and frustration of Nigerians before things go out of hand, lamenting that Nigerians were really suffering.

While giving insight into the conversations with President Tinubu before the N70,000 minimum wage was agreed, the NLC president lamented that Nigerians appeared to have started adjusting to the situation on ground because the government had been distracting organized labour.

“There is a tactic to distract our attention, to call us names, level allegations against us over cybercrime, financing terrorism, sponsoring terrorism and the rest.

“Those things have paid off because while we are facing those allegations, this issue of pump price has remained.

“I repeat, we were betrayed by Mr President, that statement we issued over our being betrayed is being denied by officials of the government. I am repeating it that we were betrayed. Some of you here were at the meeting when Mr President said, Ajaero you are the problem.

“Since we said subsidy is gone. You don’t want to allow us to increase again. If you allow me to increase we will pay you that N250, 000. Immediately I came out that day I was on Arise Television I repeated what Mr President told us.

“The president said I am giving you one hour to decide on this and get back to me. He said he was going back to his office and we should decide over this (between N250,000 minimum wage and petrol pump price hike).

“We said no, Sir, Mr President; we can’t be holding our meeting here in your office. Let us take one week break and come back and report back to you. He said okay, I am traveling but I will cancel my trip for one week. That was how we adjourned for one week.

“If you followed the trend of those negotiations, we adjourned for one week. And when we came back after consultations, we said to Mr President, no, we can’t allow you to increase to any length because that will affect all Nigerians and we will be seen to be selfish. ”Even the N250,000 will not be useful to us. If we continue to increase salary, it will make a mess of our economy and then you continue to increase pump price. In fact, that N250,000 may not be enough to even buy fuel.

“Mr President equally offered to fund our trip to tour some West African countries, where the least price of petrol is selling at N1,700. He even said in Cameroon, they are selling N2000 and that none of them has a refinery but they are getting their products from Nigeria.

”We responded by telling him to check the borders because that is why they are smuggling those products to those countries. ”We equally said no because Nigerians will say they have given us money; they won’t say it’s money for us to visit those West African states.

“On the adjourned date, we went there and told Mr President, we are not here for increase in pump price or negotiation. So let’s concentrate on the minimum wage. Some of these things informed the acceptance of N70,000 minimum wage which some of us here were saying was not enough. But some people are still saying they cannot pay that N70, 000. ”This is the dilemma all of us are facing. In fact, the private sector employers in our meeting gave us tough time. They refused to shift and they wanted to vote with state government, federal government and the private sector on one side, all against labour on the other side. These were some of the things that necessitated all those walkouts you saw.”

NNPC Issues Fresh Estimated Petrol price Breakdown

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited has released an updated breakdown of the estimated price of petrol purchased from the Dangote Refinery.

On Monday morning, the NNPC provided a chart detailing the refined petrol it acquired from the refinery on Sunday.

Payments for the September 2024 petrol supply, according to NNPC, are being made to Dangote Refinery in US dollars, with Naira transactions scheduled to begin on October 1, 2024.

NNPC Ltd. Has released the estimated prices of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), also known as petrol, sourced from the Dangote Refinery, for distribution at its retail outlets nationwide.

“These prices are based on negotiated terms between NNPC Ltd. And Dangote Refinery, taking into account current international gasoline prices and the prevailing foreign exchange rate, in accordance with the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021.

“NNPC Ltd. Confirms that it is making payments in USD for the September 2024 PMS supply, with Naira payments starting on October 1, 2024.

“We assure Nigerians that any discounts received from Dangote Refinery will be fully passed on to the public,” the statement from NNPC reads.

While the data of the estimated price to be sold around the country remains the same, the analysis of the transaction it had with Dangote Refinery was modified.

In the initial statement released on Monday, a Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority fee of N8.99 was listed, while the revised version showed a fee of N4.495.

The first breakdown included an inspection fee of N0.97, a margin fee of N26.48, and a distribution fee of N15.

However, in the updated release, the inspection and margin fees were removed, and the distribution fee was adjusted to N42.45.

In addition, the second statement introduced a Midstream and Gas Infrastructure Fund fee of N4.495. 

Just In: NNPCL Hikes Petrol Price, Sells At N855/Litre In Lagos

 

There are strong indications that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has increased the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit popularly known as petrol nationwide.

A video sighted on Tuesday morning revealed that the product sold for N855 per litre at an NNPCL filling station in Ikoyi, Lagos, up from N568.

“N855 o! Latest news. N855, NNPC, Awolowo Road, Ikoyi,” a voice lamented in the background of the 23-second video clip which reveals the new pump price.

It was learnt that a litre is sold for as high as N925 at NNPC station in Port Harcourt Rivers State.

Although the NNPCL has not officially confirmed the increase, it has hinted at a possible increase as the landing cost reportedly surged above N1,000/litre.

The hike is coming barely 48 hours after the NNPCL raised the alarm that it owed importers about $6bn debt amidst the worsening fuel supply in the country.

After several denials, the national oil company admitted on Sunday that it was facing financial difficulty with a report indicating that the company is owing over $6bn.

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited is set to become the “initial exclusive buyer” of products from the Dangote Refinery as the 650,000 barrel per day plant begins processing of premium motor spirit (PMS) also known as petroleum, report has indicated.

This is coming amidst the worsening fuel supply in Nigeria with the NNPCL indicating that the supply gap might get worse following its indebtedness to importers.

After several denials, the national oil company admitted on Sunday that it was facing financial difficulty with a report indicating that the company is owing over $6billion.

The NNPCL Chief Corporate Communications Officer, Mr. Olufemi Soneye had told Daily Trust on Monday that the company had been subsidising petrol with N500 per litre for a year.

“I think the important thing for us on our own part is to let the whole world know that we are in trouble if we continue. NNPC has been paying N500 per litre for every Nigerian that has been buying fuel within the past one year.

“So, the truth of the matter is that Nigerians have been getting cheap fuel because the NNPC is doing something for them. NNPC has been bearing the shortfall and it is now unbearable. The landing cost is N1,100, that shortfall is what we have been bearing,” he said.

He stated that it is left for the owners of the NNPC and the federal government to decide the next line of action.

Petrol Price To Crash To N300/Litre As Dangote Refinery, Others Start Massive Production

 

The Crude Oil Refinery Owners Association of Nigeria (CORAN) has announced that the pump price of petrol will drop to around N300/litre once local refineries, including Dangote Petroleum Refinery, start producing at full capacity. This is contingent on the government providing adequate crude oil supply to local refiners.

According to CORAN’s Publicity Secretary, Eche Idoko, the current high price of petrol is unsustainable and only benefits importers and foreign refiners. He cited the example of diesel prices dropping from N1,700 to N1,200/litre after Dangote Refinery began production.

Idoko emphasized that the price of petrol will come down if local refineries are allowed to work, and the current high price is only serving the interests of global refiners abroad.

This development has sparked hope among Nigerians for a significant reduction in petrol prices, which currently stand at around N700/litre.