Business News
Marketers project N350/litre and N400/litre pump price
The pump price will have increased by more than 100% as a result over the time period. Dealers warned that the price of gasoline would…
Given the continuous scarcity of the product, Premium Motor Spirit, often known as gasoline, could reach N400 per litre at the majority of gas stations before the end of this year, according to oil marketers on Tuesday.
The pump price will have increased by more than 100% as a result over the time period. Dealers warned that the price of gasoline would continue to soar at the pump if the shortage persisted, noting that PMS was already selling for about N450 per litre on the illicit market in many areas.
This occurred as drivers bemoaned the Federal Government’s and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited’s steadfast silence regarding the ongoing crisis in the downstream oil sector.
The majority of IPMAN members, who controlled the majority of the filling stations throughout the nation, were now required to purchase PMS at about N220/litre, which is why many outlets currently dispense at about N250/litre and above, according to Chief Ukadike Chinedu, the organization’s national public relations officer.
He stressed that consumers should be prepared to pay between N350/litre and N400/litre before the end of this year because the cost of the commodity has been increasing due to its scarcity and other industry-related concerns.
“I’ve always discussed with you frankly on the PMS supply situation in Nigeria. A vessel arrived 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.”
Ukadike added that when major marketers bought at this price, they would sell above N210/litre to independent marketers, confirming an earlier exclusive story by The PUNCH that the ex-depot price of gasoline had increased to roughly N185/litre.
“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.”
According to the allegation, the Federal Government secretly permitted depot owners to raise the price of gasoline at the pump from the legal rate of N147/litre to roughly N185/litre.
“The subsidised ex-depot rate for petrol from NNPC is about N147/litre, but tell me, which depot is selling at that rate today? I know somebody who said he bought from a depot at N182/litre. And he got it at this rate because he did bulk purchase, he bought about 20 trucks,” a major marketer, who requested not to be named due to lack of authorisation, told our correspondent.
The official added, “And he bought it from one of the major marketing companies. So, when you make a bulk purchase at N182/litre, then you can imagine what those who are buying one or two trucks will have to pay for the product.
READ MORE: Lagos’ fuel scarcity worsens, with stations accused of hoarding
“This means that there is hardly any depot you can go to now that you can get products for less than N185/litre. And by the time you buy at N185/litre at the depots, why won’t they sell at N200/litre and above?”
Speaking on the subject, Billy Gillis-Harry, President of the Petroleum Retail Outlet Owners Association of Nigeria, told our correspondent on Tuesday that if the current situation persisted, the price of PMS would continue to rise.
“I have said in the last seven months that the price of PMS in Nigeria is not sustainable. Initially, it was being dodged by everybody, but you’ve heard the NNPC come out clearly to say that the price that it is being sold is not sustainable,” he stated.
He added, “Now, we are here in the reality of today. So, I think that what we should focus on is availability of products, not to worry much about petroleum price, for we don’t know if the product will even be available.
The price per litre is currently between N400 and N450 on the illegal market. In Lagos, when I tried to get a five-litre jerry can, the price quoted was N2,200, or N450 per litre.
“You cannot do that for a product that is not even available – a product that you struggle to purchase,” Gillis-Harry said in reference to the alleged racketeering by some marketers. The NNPC is under attack, and the currency also faces challenges.
The president of PETROAN said that accelerating domestic crude oil refining was the only effective way to address the present PMS supply situation in Nigeria.
“I’m hoping this doesn’t continue towards the end of the year since that would make the holidays monotonous. However, I can assure you that increasing local refining capacity will ultimately be the answer to this problem, according to Gillis-Harry.