The pump price of Premium Motor Spirit, PMS, otherwise known as petrol, has risen to as high as N1,430 per litre at some filling stations in Abuja.
The increase followed a fresh N85 hike in the gantry price of petrol by Dangote Petroleum Refinery, from N1,265 to N1,350 per litre.
Kano Times reports that the adjustment represents a 6.7 per cent increase and has pushed Dangote Refinery’s wholesale price above the current petrol landing cost of N1,311 per litre.
The development comes amid a fresh rise in global crude oil prices.
Brent crude, the benchmark for Nigeria’s oil, rose from about $107.92 to $108.21 per barrel, piling pressure on operators in the downstream petroleum sector.
Checks on Sunday showed that several filling stations across the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, had adjusted their pump prices upward.
MRS retail outlets increased their prices from N1,350 to N1,395 per litre, while NIPCO outlets raised theirs from N1,350 to N1,430 per litre.
Mobil outlets also increased their pump price from N1,350 to N1,400 per litre.
A petrol attendant at an MRS filling station, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said motorists should expect another increase once the station receives fresh supplies.
“We are currently selling our old stock at N1,395 per litre, but from tomorrow, once the new stock arrives, the price will be higher,” she said.
The fresh hike is expected to increase transportation costs and place additional pressure on households and businesses.
An economist and development expert, Aliyu Ilias, warned that the rising cost of petrol could worsen inflation and deepen economic hardship in the country.
He said higher fuel prices would increase transportation and production costs, particularly for food and other essential commodities.
“I think there should be a way of absorbing these costs. If you do not absorb them, they will show up in our next inflation figures and economic analysis.
“The more prices increase, the more the cost of producing goods, especially food, will rise because everything is affected by transportation costs.
“This kind of change is not good for the economy at all, and people are going to face more hardship as a result,” he said.
Similarly, former Secretary-General of the Organisation of African Trade Union Unity, OATUU, Owei Lakemfa, urged the Federal Government to shield Nigerians from the impact of fluctuations in global oil prices.
Lakemfa said Nigeria needed stronger economic planning and regulatory measures to prevent global crises from automatically translating into higher domestic fuel prices.
According to him, Nigeria, as a major crude oil producer, should enjoy the advantage of refining its petroleum products locally.
“The ongoing geopolitical tensions involving major oil-producing and consuming countries, as well as attacks in the Middle East, are factors that can affect global oil prices and should not come as a surprise to policymakers.
“We have known that the conflict between the U.S. and Iran will affect the shipping of oil products. We know that.
“In basic economics, when you are close to the source of your products, you have advantages. If we produce oil in Nigeria, refining in Nigeria cannot be the same as importing fuel. It cannot be,” he said.
Lakemfa noted that importing refined petroleum products attracts additional costs, including labour, insurance and shipping expenses.
He said the country must plan ahead rather than allow domestic petrol prices to rise automatically whenever geopolitical tensions affect the international oil market.
“It cannot just be that any time Iran attacks the US or there is another conflict, the price goes up. We have to plan. And that is the only sense of governance,” he said.
The former OATUU scribe also raised concerns over what he described as elements of oligopoly and monopoly in Nigeria’s downstream petroleum market.
According to him, regulatory agencies must prevent any individual or group from exercising excessive influence over the price of petrol.
“You cannot allow any individual or group to dictate to the country. That is why you have regulatory agencies. The government is there to protect the state and the people,” he said.
Lakemfa urged the Federal Government and relevant consumer protection agencies to take stronger action against arbitrary increases in petrol prices.
He stressed that changes in global crude oil prices should not automatically result in equivalent increases in domestic fuel prices.
Meanwhile, the National Publicity Secretary of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, IPMAN, Chinedu Ukadike, said marketers had reviewed their pump prices following a series of adjustments by Dangote Refinery.
Ukadike said the frequent changes were creating uncertainty for marketers and consumers, particularly because the cost of replacing products could change at any time.
NAN
