The Nigerian
government will not increase the pump price of petrol despite a demand that it
should do so, officials have said. The forum of former Group Managing Directors
of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, on Sunday called for the
price increase by calling for a removal of price cap in the pricing template.
A removal of
the price cap would mean that marketers would be free to sell petrol at their
desired price, based on several factors such as the exchange rate and
international crude price.
With the
Naira exchange rate going down by over 50 per cent to about N412 since the
current petrol price was fixed, approving the recommendation would have meant
Nigerians pay more for petrol.
The Nigerian
government through the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency, PPPRA,
however, said on Monday that it will not accept the advice.
The former
GMDs had in a 12-point communiqué at the end their meeting with the incumbent
GMD of the NNPC, Maikanti Baru, said the price cap of N145 per litre of petrol
was “not congruent with the liberalization policy.”
The removal
of the cap under a liberalised market environment would allow marketers of
petroleum products to sell products at any price to enable them recover cost.
The Forum
said the current ceiling price of N145 per litre did not factor the current
foreign exchange (FOREX) rate and other price components of the pricing
template, like crude oil cost and Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) charges, which
remain uncapped.
While
stating the government’s response, the acting Executive Secretary of PPPRA,
Sotonye Iyoyo, said the proposal was the personal opinion of the former state
oil chiefs.
“If it was a
recommendation, that is what it is a personal opinion. I’m not aware government
is planning any fuel price increase. We are in a liberalised market already,”
she told Premiums Times.
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