Amid concerns about rising cost living and general uncertainty in the economy, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC Ltd) on Wednesday reassured Nigerians against fears that there was a plan or agreement to hike the retail price of premium motor spirit (PMS), also called petrol in the new year.
Media reports on Tuesday quoted the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) as saying that the retail price for petrol could double in the new year, from the current average of N617 per litre to about N1,200, if the Federal Government goes ahead with an alleged plan to remove subsidy on petrol in the new year.
In his inaugural speech in May 2023, President Bola Tinubu had ordered the removal of fuel subsidy, which kept petrol price at about N189 per litre.
Following the order, petrol price jumped to about N620 per litre in some parts of the country and about N670 in others.
However, there have been lingering reports that but for another subsidy that was smuggled into the petrol pricing template by the government, the price of the commodity could have skyrocketed above N1000 per litre, considering the spiralling of the rate of foreign exchange in recent times.
With the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) pressurising the present administration to do away with all forms of subsidies in a bid to strengthen the economy, reports about an imminent removal of the subsidy on petrol have been rife.
On Tuesday, there were reports about a disagreement between the NNPC Ltd, which is at the moment the sole importer and supply of last resort for the country, and the independent marketers under the umbrella of IPMAN over the alleged plan to remove subsidy on petrol.
The report said the disagreement was a fallout from the impact of the declining value of the naira against the dollar at both the official Investors/ Exporters Window and the black market. At the prevailing official market exchange rate of about N998 to the dollar against about N1,225 to the dollar at the black market, the independent marketers argue that if the government proceeds to implement that recommendations of the World Bank and IMF, removing subsidy could drive petrol price above N1,200 per litre.
The reports have stirred huge anxiety among Nigerians who are afraid the new price regime would worsen their already precarious cost of living. But in reaction to the reports, the NNPC Ltd. allayed fears about any plan to hike the price of petrol
The statement by the NNPC Limited signed by its spokesperson, Femi Soneye, and entitled: “No Increase in PMS Prices, NNPC Ltd. Assures Nigerians”, read: “The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Ltd. assures the public that there is no imminent increase in the cost of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), commonly known as petrol.
“NNPC Ltd. urges Nigerians to disregard unfounded rumours and assures them that there are no plans for an upward review of the PMS price.
“Motorists nationwide are advised against engaging in panic buying, as there is presently ample availability of PMS across the country.”
