Di price increase come enta on di same day wey Dangote Refinery roll out dia PMS product for across
Nigerians still dey struggle to adjust to di new price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), wey pipo sabi simply as petrol, afta di Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) on Tuesday, increase di price from 617 naira to 897 naira.
Di price increase come enta on di same day wey Dangote Refinery roll out dia PMS product for across di kontri.
Dangote Refinery, na private refinery wey di owner na Africa second richest man, Aliko Dangote. Di refinery wey begin operation in early 2024 bin don dey produce diesel and aviation fuel dey supply to petroleum marketers, but na on dat Tuesday, September 3, 2024, dem start to supply PMS to di Nigeria market.
As di discussion of di fuel increase dey go on, some ordinary Nigerians wey tok to BBC Pidgin bin express hope say as Dangote don start to dey produce fuel for Nigeria, di price go soon come down.
"Na im make some of di big men for di petroleum sector dey try to sabotage di (Dangote) refinery, becos dem know say once e start producing fuel, dia business don spoil," Agaba Enenche, one ordinary Nigeria wey BBC Pidgin meet for NNPC fueling station for Wuse Zone 4, Abuja, tok.
But shey dis go really be di case? Petrol from Dangote Refinery fit make di product cheaper for Nigerians?
NNPC and Dangote dey go front and back
Di NNPC insist say di petroleum sector don dey deregulated, which mean to say goment hand no dey again in fixing di price of products, but stakeholders for di sector including Dangote refinery tok say dat no be true.
On Thursday, Vice President Kashim Shettima meet wit di Minister of State for Petroleum, Heineken Lokpobri, and di NNPC oga kpatakpata, Mele Kyari, and afta dat meeting, Lokpobri tell tori pipo say enof petrol dey di kontri now and di fuel queues go soon disappear.
However, "di prices fit dey much higher for some places pass some places, becos di sector don dey deregulated, goment no dey fix prices, and na market forces dey determine di price of di product", Lokpobri tok.
Di NNPC later publish statement for dia X handle wia dem confam di same tin wey di Minister tok.
Dat same Thursday Dangote Refinery release statement wia dem tok say "di PMS market dey strictly regulated, and all oil marketers and stakeholders know, so we no fit determine, fix or influence di price of di product, becos e dey for di hand of relevant goment authorities".
Di refinery issue di statement sake of one tori wey tok say NNPC don start to dey carry PMS from dem to sell to Nigerians, but dem say no be true, "NNPC neva start to dey lift refined PMS from us".
Wetin dey determine price of fuel?
Becos say Nigeria bin dey import fuel, di factors wey dey determine fuel price for di kontri include:
.International price of crude oil
"As e be now di landing cost of PMS na about N1,100 per litre, so as e be now, wit fuel selling for betwin 800 to 900 naira, e show say goment dey subsidise di product by almost 50%," Oworu tok.
"If di market forces go determine price, Dangote fuel go dey shave off at most 50 to 70 naira, becos di only difference na di freight cost."
Oworu, however tok say as Nigeria goment bin don agree to sell crude oil to Dangote in naira, dem fit agree wit am to also sell PMS to dem in naira, and dat go comot di foreign exchange wahala, and maybe e fit make Dangote PMS to sell slightly lower dan di market prices.
Anoda sabi pesin, Olabode Sowumi, di Chairman of Nigeria Energy Transition Study Group of Nigeria Gas association, also tok di same, but e add say "e no dey likely say di naira go kontinu to fall against di dollar and di price of petrol go remain di same witout some kind of subsidy".
Fuel fit dey more available, not more affordable
Dr Okey Okere, Economist wey get beta experience for di Energy Sector, tell BBC Pidgin for interview say im major challenge na di fact say NNPCL go be di only buyer of Dangote oil, so na dem go come dey sell to di oda oil marketers.
"Dat one go make di NNPCL anoda monopoly, and even though dem dey claim say goment hand don comot for di company, we know say e still dey for goment hand and e go still behave like goment institution which we know through di years say dem no too dey efficient," Dr Okere tok.
Also, e tok say infrastructure na anoda factor. "If we go still rely on trucks to move into Lagos from Kano, from Kaura Namoda, and across di kontri, to buy fuel from Dangote Refinery, and come dey carry am back wit our bad roads, wit police collecting money for road, tiff pipo, and kidnappers, and all of dose tins wey dey happun for Nigeria roads, I no know how petroleum price fit dey significantly lower for Nigeria".
"So I expect say we go see change especially for di stability of our currency, becos we no go dey run around for forex to take import fuel. But I no sure e go affect inflation. Inflation go still dey high for some time bicos I no get confidence for di NNPC to manage di distribution of di PMS effectively and efficiently to bring down di price."
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