NNPCL’s Latest Fuel Price Increase Sparks More Controversy Amid Biting ‘Deregulation’

Controversies have continued to trail a new template for the sale of petrol across the 36 states of the federation by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) outlets.

BIGPEN NIGERIA (https://bigpenngr.com) reports that the template indicates the new price jumps from N855 per litre to N998 per litre, representing a 12.7% or N113 increase.

NNPCL had in September when it took it first deliveries from Dangote refinery, announced N950.22 as the average price of a litre in Lagos State, which is its shortest route, and N1, 019.22 per litre for Borno State, the longest and extreme end of the supply route.

This latest hike comes just weeks after the previous price adjustment on September 3, 2024, when the price was raised from N568 (in Lagos) and N617 (in other parts of the country) to a minimum of N855.

It was gathered that the latest price increase is already being implemented at NNPCL depots in Lagos State.

Investigations, however indicated that the NNPCL pump price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) is pegged at N1,030 per litre in Abuja, effective Wednesday.

Industry experts revealed that the price increase follows NNPCL’s termination of its exclusive purchase agreement with Dangote Refinery on Monday.

The move allows other marketers to directly purchase petrol from the refinery, ending NNPCL’s sole off-taker status.

The deregulation aligns with current practices for fully deregulated products, enabling refineries to sell to marketers on a “willing buyer, willing seller” basis.

Recalls that Engr. Farouk Ahmed, Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), had in early September stated that the government or any of its agencies have ceased to fix the prices of petroleum products, adding that determining the cost of products is expected to thrive under the forces of demand and supply.

According to him, market forces are strictly responsible for determining the price of petrol, in line with the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), 2021.

He maintained that interested parties in the oil and gas sector have every right to order, supply and sell petrol in Nigeria, saying part of the role of the NMDPRA is not to allow anyone to go overboard by exploiting the market or the final consumers.

Ahmed said that before the scrapping of the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) and its replacement, PPPRA was the agency of the government, established in 2003 to, among other responsibilities, monitor and regulate the supply and distribution, and also determine the prices of petroleum products in Nigeria.

According to Daily Trust, Ahmed said the pump price announced by the NNPCL was meant for its numerous outlets across the country, and is not incumbent on other competitors to abide by it.

“We try to restrain ourselves from needless controversy,” he said, adding; “the recent transaction between NNPCL and Dangote Refinery is strictly based on a willing buyer and a willing seller”.

“But in a situation whereby some Nigerians expect us to regulate the price, it then means that the sector has not been deregulated; and it means we would continue to have problems,” he said.