Fuel Price Increases To N310 Per Litre In Nigeria [Photo]

Fuel price has increased to N310 per litre in Nigeria.

News One reports that some filling stations in Nigeria have increased fuel price to N310/Ltr as the scarcity bites harder in the West African country. Some filling stations in Lagos and Ogun state have had to adjust their pricing system severally due to the scarcity and reports have it that it now sells for as much as N310/ltr.

This online news platform understands that the fuel price increase is coming at a time Nigerians have been struggling to get fuel with long queues experienced across several filling stations nationwide.

News One Nigeria reports that it’s been difficult for Nigerians to have access to fuel without going through long queues that render their day unproductive. For some weeks, activities have been literally crippled in some parts of the country due to the effect of the fuel scarcity that continues to linger on.

While some filling stations have increased the fuel price in Nigeria to N310/litre, Newsone reports that the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit, popularly called petrol, could hit N400/litre at most filling stations before the end of this year, going by the continued scarcity of the product, oil marketers stated on Tuesday, November 29, 2022.

This will represent over 100 per cent increase in the pump price over the period. Dealers said if the scarcity of petrol failed to abate, its pump price would continue to rise, as they noted that PMS cost was already about N450/litre at the black market in many states.

This came as motorists decried the continued silence of the Federal Government and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited over the lingering crisis in the downstream oil sector.

The National Public Relations Officer, of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Chief Ukadike Chinedu, told PUNCH that most IPMAN members, who owned the bulk of the filling stations across the country, were now subjected to purchasing PMS at about N220/litre, which was why many outlets currently dispensed at about N250/litre and above.

Chinedu said the cost of the commodity had been rising due to its unavailability and other concerns in the sector, stressing that consumers should be ready to pay between N350/litre to N400/litre before the end of this year.

“I’ve always discussed with you frankly the PMS supply situation in Nigeria. A vessel arrived at Port Harcourt depot and the information we got is that it is only for major marketers. This might be happening in some other locations too,” Ukadike stated.

He added, “Where is the volume for independent marketers? We are waiting for that of independent marketers. If NNPC does not declare any volume for independent marketers, we will end up buying the product from major marketers.

“By the time we buy from major marketers, they will sell to us at about N220/litre, and you can imagine the rate which we will have to sell to consumers. So where is our quota?

“We need our quota so that we can buy at the same government-approved rate. But by selling to only major marketers, they will resell to independent marketers at between N210 to N220/litre, and we don’t have any option than to buy it.”

Chinedu confirmed an earlier exclusive report by The PUNCH that the ex-depot price of petrol had risen to about N185/litre, adding that when major marketers bought at this rate, they would sell above N210/litre to independent marketers.

“So, if care is not taken, we should be talking around N350/litre to N400/litre for the pump price of petrol before this year ends, considering the way things are going now,” the IPMAN official stated.

He added, “Remember I recently told you that the landing cost of petrol in Nigeria is above N400/litre and it should not be less than N450/litre currently. And I stand to be challenged on this; it is not less than N450/litre now.”

Fuel price and fuel scarcity: What is NNPC saying?

According to the NNPC’s Executive Vice President, Downstream, Mister Adeyemi Adetunju, fuel queues in Lagos State and Abuja is due to some construction projects going on in the state.

“The recent queues in Lagos are largely due to ongoing road infrastructure projects around Apapa and access road challenges in some parts of Lagos depots,” he said. “The gridlock is easing out and NNPC has programmed vessels and trucks to unconstrained depots and massive load outs from depots to various states are closely being monitored.”

“Abuja is impacted by the challenges recorded in Lagos. NNPC Retail and key marketers have intensified dedicated loading into Abuja to restore normalcy as soon as possible.”

However, the NNPC’s Executive Vice President, Downstream assured Nigerians of swift actions to salvage the situation faced.

“We want to reassure all Nigerians that NNPC has sufficient products, and we significantly increased product loading including 24-hour operations in selected depots and extended hours at strategic stations to ensure products sufficiency nationwide,”