Regulators, operators and marketers in the petroleum industry have formally effected a subsidy removal with market reality of petrol (PMS) selling not less than N500 per litre.
The new pricing took effect yesterday as filling stations across the country resumed sales after a few hours of product scarcity.
Meanwhile, the Federal Government’s meeting with the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, and Trade Union Congress, TUC, on the issue ended in stalemate in Abuja.
According to a document which circulated in the media space yesterday, petrol will sell at N537 per litre in Abuja, Nasarawa, Plateau, Kogi, Benue and Niger states, while the product will sell at N515 in Kwara State.
Under the new price regime, the product will sell at N550 per litre in Adamawa, Taraba, Bauchi and Gombe states ,while it will cost N540 per litre in Kano, Kaduna, Katsina, Sokoto and Jigawa.
The document further showed that the product will cost N545, N540 and N515 per litre in Kebbi, Zamfara and Abia respectively.
Checks at the depots showed that depot owners that had shut down operations due to uncertainty, reopened yesterday, selling the product at N470 per litre.
Citizens reactions continue to trail the new development. The Nigerian labour unions has remained adamant that the removal of the fuel Subsidy without prior consultations with the workers unions is unacceptable.
In a statement yesterday, the Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, rejected the subsidy withdrawal, describing the “new NNPCL pricing template as vexatious and an ambush.”
The Nigeria Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative, NEITI, insisted yesterday that deregulation of the downstream sector will block revenue leakages, improve revenue and enhance ongoing reforms in the oil and gas sector.
NEITI in a statement, noted that its “persistent calls for the removal of petrol subsidy were informed by the fact that the ways and means of funding the expenditure over these years relied more on federation accounts funds, the Federal Government and sometimes from external borrowing, with negative consequences on government’s overall revenue profiles.
“NEITI was also concerned that the consequences of funding subsidies have resulted in poor development of the downstream sector, declining GDP growth, rise in product theft, pipeline vandalism, environmental pollution and undue pressure on foreign exchange.
