Petrol price to go up as PPPRA raises ex-depot price by N6
With N138.62 approved by the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) as ex-depot price for a litre of petrol, the stage is set for Nigerians to pay more for petrol.
Many filling stations in Lagos were shut on Tuesday in anticipation of the price hike.
National Vice President of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) Abubakar Maigandi told The Nation last night that the PPPRA raised the depot price from N132/N133 per litre by N6 per litre.
According to him, the agency has approved an ex-depot N138.62 per litre price for this month.
A source, who was also part of the meeting for the monthly prices review said the agency did not come up with a new pump price. “We are yet to know the new dealer prices,” the source said.
But, a PPPRA source said the Federal Government was silent on the dealer prices which may be between N145. 68 and N150 per litre.
According to our source, the product has been deregulated and the government would not want to interfere with it or be seen to be insensitive to the plight of the customers by announcing a price hike.
The source said: “The government is weighing the option of outright announcement of the increase of the dealer prices to a band of N150 per litre in the face of the current hardship. On the other hand, it has resisted the temptation of not interfering with the market fundamentals which determine the price review.”
The source added that the upward review followed the rise of crude oil prices in the international market.
The Brent Crude that sold for $43.24 per barrel in July now sells for $44.03 per barrel.
Last month, the PPPRA had approved a pump price of a band of N140.80 to N143.80 per litre.
It was the first time that the agency approved a new price after the removal of petrol subsidy.
Prior to the July 1 hike, the agency had on May 1, approved price band of N121.50 to N123.50 per litre for the product.
The refusal by some filling stations to dispense fuel to consumers caused anxiety in Lagos yesterday.
It was learnt that the price increase ought to have been increased since but for the Eid-El-Kabir holidays.
Some marketers felt that the rise in crude oil price in the international market could lead to an adjustment of the petrol price.
Nigerians took to social media platforms yesterday suggesting that they might pay between N145 and N150 for a litre of fuel.
At the international market yesterday, oil prices slid amid concerns that a nascent recovery in fuel demand could stall as a fresh wave of COVID-19 infections around the world sparks tighter lockdowns.
