By Omenihu Alfred fibmn
Following the federal government declaration that on September 15th, the Dangote Petroleum Refinery located in the Ibeju-Lekki area of Lagos State, would commence the distribution of premium motor spirit (PMS), also known as petrol, to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, NNPC has mobilised about 300 trucks to the petrol-loading gantry of refinery to lift the first batch of petrol noting that they bought from Dangote at N898 per litre
Speaking with correspondent over the price of the product, the NNPC spokesman, Olufemi Soneye, denied claims that the national oil company purchased petrol at N760 per litre saying “We successfully loaded PMS at the Dangote refinery. The claim that we purchased it at N760 per litre is incorrect.”
At the Technical Sub-Committee meeting on the sale of crude oil to local refineries on Friday, Edun, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, who was represented by the Executive Chairman of Federal Inland Revenue Service, Zaccheus Adedeji, had announced that NNPC would be the sole off-taker of refined petrol from Dangote refinery which will then sell to various marketers while diesel from the Dangote refinery would be sold in Naira to any interested off-taker.
He also announced the completion of all agreements and modalities for the implementation of the Federal Executive Council approval on the sale of crude to local refineries in Naira and the corresponding purchase of petroleum products in the same currency. However, IPMAN has decried selling of Dangote petrol higher than imported fuel while DAPPMAN asks FG to stop Dangote refinery alleged monopoly. The refinery has noted that Nigerians should wait for a formal announcement on the pricing by the technical sub-committee on naira-based crude sales to local refineries.
Hence, Nigerian state oil firm NNPC Ltd on Monday increased the price of petrol by 11% N950 and as high as 1,019 naira in northern states, the second increase in two weeks and a day after it started purchasing the fuel from the giant Dangote oil refinery on the outskirts of Lagos. Nigeria expects the 650,000 barrels per day refinery to end years of imports of gasoline, which had been subsidised for decades until President Bola Tinubu began removing support when he took office in May last year.
The price of gasoline is a sensitive issue in Nigeria because many households and small businesses use it to power generators because the majority of citizens are not connected to the national electricity grid.The latest increase is likely to add to public anger as Nigerians are already struggling with inflation of 33.4%, which has driven up transport costs and caused a cost of living crisis that led to violent protests in early August.
Wecould recall that on Friday 13th September,, a Nigerian presidential committee announced that NNPC would distribute gasoline from the $20 billion Dangote refinery to the local market, ending a deadlock that had stalled distribution. From October NNPC will supply 385,000 barrels of crude per day to be paid for in naira by Dangote refinery, which will in turn sell its fuel in the local currency
