In defiance of the N165 per liter pump price that the Federal Government had approved, oil marketers yesterday unilaterally increased the price of petrol from N165 to N185.
The increase, which came a day after MOMAN, the Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria, claimed the present price was no longer acceptable, caused the queues at petrol stations throughout the Abuja metropolis to dissipate.
Checks at a number of filling stations revealed that while some stations increased prices by merely N10 per liter, the majority did so by N20.
At NIPCO filling station in Mabushi District, the price was N175 per liter with few vehicles in the station.
Speaking to Vanguard, a motorist who identified himself as Mallam Ibrahim noted that it was better to buy N175 per liter than to spend four hours in the queue waiting to buy at N165 per liter.
He said: “My friend, is this not better? Why should we spend so much time just buying petrol? Even though I do not support full deregulation because of its impact on the price of goods, the government should have raised the price a little to accommodate the complaints of the marketers and save people the agony of queuing every time for fuel”.
The cost at the Mobil filling station in Karu was N185 per liter, and there were no queues. At the TotalEnergies filling station in the Central Business District, the cost remained the same at N165 per liter.
The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria’s (IPMAN) Public Relations Officer, Chief Chinedu Ukadike, commented on the move and said it was expected because marketers must cover their operating costs.
Ukadike noted that most stations shut down as a result of the marketers operating at a loss over the previous months.
According to him, “Abinitio, we have also stated that there is no way marketers will buy products from private depots who are now selling at N170 and some at N167 depending on the area the tank farm is situated. These private tank farm owners have made it clear that they cannot sell at a government-approved price.“
“While those (marketers) in Calabar might buy at N170 or those in Port Harcourt at N162 or those in Lagos at N163 depending on how the tank farm owner got his product if you include the cost of logistics and the numerous taxes government has imposed on us, then the end result is what you are seeing”, he stated.
