Legit.ng journalist Victor Enengedi has over a decade's experience covering Energy, MSMEs, Technology and the stock market.
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) is gearing up to introduce a fresh pricing regime for the product despite last month's adjustments.
Sources close to the development reveal that changes are imminent, setting the stage for increased hardship for Nigerians.
On September 3, the NNPC raised the price of petrol at its filling stations from N617 per litre to between N855 and N897, depending on the location.
Shortly afterwards, on September 15, the NNPC started lifting petrol from the Dangote Refinery as the exclusive off-taker of the product.
On that day, the company revealed that it was purchasing the product from the refinery at N898.78 per litre and selling it to marketers at N765.99 per litre, thereby covering a substantial subsidy of nearly N133 per litre.
Reports indicate that the NNPC lifted approximately 103 million litres of petrol from the Dangote Refinery between September 15 and 30.
According to NNPC insiders speaking to Premium Times, as the company depletes its imported petrol stock and increasingly depends on supplies from the Dangote Refinery, an upward adjustment in pump prices is inevitable to reflect this shift.
In a pricing template released on September 16, the company indicated that once the gantry price from the Dangote Refinery and all associated charges were factored in, petrol prices at its pumps across the country would rise, depending on the location.
According to the template, stations in Lagos would sell petrol for N950.22 per litre, Rivers State for N980.22, and Abuja for N992.22.
The price would be N999.22 per litre in the northwest, while in Borno and other Northeastern states, it would reach approximately N1,019 per litre.
The cost would be N980.22 for the southeast, while in Southwest states such as Oyo, Ogun, Ekiti, Osun, and Ondo, consumers would pay N960.22 per litre.
However, company insiders have stated that the estimates from September 16 are no longer accurate due to fluctuations in the foreign exchange rate and the increase in crude oil prices driven by escalating tensions in the Middle East.
The official said:
“With crude now trading for more than $78 per barrel as of Sunday (today) and the naira exchanging for N1,660 to a dollar, there is no way a litre of petrol can sell for below N1350 per litre in Nigeria.”PAY ATTENTION: Сheck out news that is picked exactly for YOU ➡️ find the “Recommended for you” block on the home page and enjoy!
Source: Legit.ng