Residents of Abuja are groaning as petrol prices surge to between N1,415 and N1,450 per litre, leaving motorists, workers and commuters to grapple with rising transportation costs and increased pressure on household budgets.
Oil marketers have raised the price of petrol by about N100 in the last two weeks, following an increase in the gantry price of petrol by Dangote Refinery from N1,265 to N1,350 per litre.
The latest increase has begun to affect households and businesses, with transportation bearing much of the impact as commuters are forced to spend more on daily trips.
The continued hostilities in the Middle East between Iran and the United States over the control of the Strait of Hormuz have also contributed to the global oil crisis since February this year.
Checks by the Nigerian Tribune in the city centre on Monday showed that Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) retail stations were dispensing petrol at N1,345 per litre, while major marketers were selling above N1,400 per litre.
AFDIN and AA Rano filling stations along Airport Road were selling at N1,415 per litre, while NIPCO and AYM Shafa on the same route were dispensing at N1,430 per litre.
At the Mararaba axis in Nasarawa State, along the busy Abuja-Keffi Expressway, Hariz and Zamson filling stations were selling petrol at N1,450 per litre.
Some government workers who spoke with the Nigerian Tribune expressed concern over the latest development, calling for urgent measures to cushion the effect on Nigerians who are already struggling with the rising cost of living.
Commuters are also paying more for transportation, as the fare from Masaka-New Nyanya-Ado-One-Man Village axis in Nasarawa State to Abuja has increased from N800 to N1,000.
A driver told the Nigerian Tribune that he bought petrol at N1,350 per litre last week and spent N50,000 to fill his vehicle, only to return to the filling station on Monday and find that the price had increased to N1,450 per litre.
He said, ‘Last week, I bought N50,000 worth of fuel last week at N1,350 per litre and I did not have any cause to go to filling station. Today (Monday), I was surprised when I bought it at N1,450 per litre and I did not even know until I looked at the pump.
I bought N10,000 fuel at N1,450 per litre and that is 6.9 litres, that is depressing. So, in Nigeria now, a litre of fuel is equivalent to $1 or more, what is happening?’
Also, a commuter who gave her name as Mary said the increase was putting additional pressure on her already limited income.
She said, ‘I work in Abuja, I stay in Masaka and I earned N40,000 as salary. Last Friday, I paid N800 to Abuja but the story has changed because I paid N1,000 with a lot of pleading because the driver actually said he was going to collect N1,200.
That is additional N200 for me and it’s affecting me. That is just to Abuja and it excluded the one I spend from my house to the junction and to my work place when I get to Abuja. I have not added feeding and some other things.’
Speaking with the Nigerian Tribune, the National President of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Alhaji Abubakar Maigandi Shettima, urged the Federal Government to provide crude oil intervention to Dangote Refinery to enable it reduce its price to marketers.
He said such a reduction would eventually benefit motorists and other Nigerians.
According to the IPMAN president, Dangote, as a businessman, is focused on making profit and would sell his products based on prevailing market conditions.
‘We are advising the authority to see the way they can reducing the chain of the market price by using Dangote Refinery. That is to create an intervention for crude oil to him so that he (Dangote) too can reduce the price so that the marketers will buy at discounted rate through him and send to motorists at a lower rate.
Dangote, as I said needs intervention of crude oil. First we are doing well in Nigeria now, we’ve a refinery and at the same time we have crude oil in the country. So they should reduce the cost of that crude oil so that when he refines, he too will reduce the price for the marketers.
‘We cannot blame Dangote, we cannot blame marketers because already everybody knows that he has to go and sell this product outside at a higher rate and when he brought it, he refines it and there’s nothing he can do than to put his own profit and send to the marketers.
And for us too, when he increases his price, there is nothing we can do we have to increase our price so that we can get something out of it,’ Shettima said.