Nigeria’s official retail price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) otherwise known as fuel which is N145 per litre still remain the lowest in the West African sub-region based on survey of gasoline prices as at December 25, 2017. Sierra Leone which has the second lowest price in the sub-region retails the product at N279.57 per litre while Mali has the highest official retail price of the petroleum product at N457.17.
There is substantial difference in these prices among countries. The differences in prices across countries are due to the various taxes and subsidies for gasoline. All countries have access to the same petroleum prices of international markets but then decide to impose different taxes. As a result, the retail price of gasoline is different.
The average retail price of fuel in the West Africa sub-region is N341.31 per litre while the global average price is N400.22 per litre.
Nigeria has been bedeviled by the scarcity of fuel in the build up to the festive season with various agencies and marketers trading blame.
The Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association (DAPPMA) in a statement signed by Olufemi Adewole, Executive Secretary, DAPPMA put the blame on the fact that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has been the sole importer of PMS into the country since October 2017 because “current import price of petrol is about N170 / litre”.
“NNPC, which absorbs the attendant subsidy on behalf of the Federal Government, is the importer of last resort. We understand that NNPC meets this demand largely through its Direct Sales Direct Purchase (DSDP) framework; however due to price challenges on the DSDP platform, some participants in the scheme failed to meet their supply quota of refined petroleum product, especially PMS, to NNPC”.
The statement went further to state that historically DAPPMA members imported about 65 percent of the nation’s total fuel consumption, Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN) imports about 15 percent and PPMC/NNPC import the balance of 20 percent but this scenario changed drastically due to several challenges faced by marketers.
However, the NNPC in an official statement signed by Ndu Ughamadu, Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division stated that “it has supplied appreciable volume to DAPPMA, MOMAN and Independent Petroleum Marketers of Nigeria (IPMAN) to rid the challenges currently being experienced in the supply and distribution of petroleum products in the country.
“The statement by DAPPMA that the current hiccups in the supply of products was due to the inability of the Direct Sales Direct Purchase (DSDP) partners of NNPC to deliver on their business obligations is unfounded and self-indicting as many of DAPPMA members patronize the same DSDP international counterparts as the corporation”.
FRANK UZUEGBUNAM
