CONFUSION FUEL PRICE TO RISE AGAIN IF…IPMAN, NNPCL DISAGREE
The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria
(IPMAN) haS warned that the cost of petrol could rise again amid a foreign
exchange crisis.
Prices are projected to rise to about 720 naira a litre
($0.93; £0.73) from the current average of $0.77.
This would be the third price hike since President Bola
Tinubu came to power in May.
This latest warning comes as the local currency trades at an
all time high of 910-945 naira against the dollar at the parallel market.
The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria
(IPMAN) says they fear fuel prices will continue to increase as long as the
dollar rises against the Naira in the foreign exchange market.
The oil marketers also said that many dealers who want to
import the product have had to suspend the plan due to the scarcity of foreign
exchange.
Chinedu Okoronkwo, the association's president, explained
that "with fuel subsidy removal, the government is no longer determining
pump prices but the market forces".
Apart from the foreign exchange crisis, the cost of
transporting petroleum products from depots in Lagos to other parts of the
country is also a contributing factor to the price of petrol.
A transactional analysis of a major operator showed that
marketers were paying N604.14 per litre as total direct cost.
A breakdown shows product cost per liter at N578.46, freight
(Lome-Lagos) at N10.37, port charges at N7.37, NMDPRA levy of N4.47, storage
cost at N2.58, Marine insurance cost at N0.47, fendering cost at N0.36 and
”others” at N0.05 as well as a finance cost amounting to N28.04.
This has forced oil marketers to sell fuel at higher prices
to consumers especially those in northern Nigeria.
Meanwhile, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) on Monday through its social media handles has denied any plans to hike the price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) to around N750 per litre as being bandied in the media.
Nigerians are facing rising costs of food items and transportation amid high inflation rates and cost of living crisis.
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