The prices of petroleum products are rising globally, and NNPCL, being a limited liability company, cannot continue to operate at a loss.
By Ife Osemedua
365Daily – Amidst widespread condemnation from Nigerians and calls for the reversal of the recent fuel price hike across the country, the Federal Government has explained that it is not to linked the increase which it attributed to global market volatility.
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) on Wednesday, October 9, 2024, announced changes to the pump price of fuel from N897 per litre to N1,030 in Abuja and N855 to N998 in Lagos.
In reaction, majority of Nigerians called on President Bola Tinubu to reverse the upward review, while lamenting that it will compound their economic woes.
Defending the Federal Government on Thursday, October 10, 2024, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, explained that the decision was made by the NNPCL due to prevailing conditions in the global energy market.
The minister, while calling for public understanding, assured that despite the temporary challenges, the price of petrol would eventually stabilise and come down in the future.
He further explained that the government is no longer in control of petroleum products pricing of petroleum products, in compliance with the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).
Idris stated, “The NNPCL made this decision based on market realities and not on any instruction from the government.
“Since the removal of the subsidy in May 2023, NNPCL has been absorbing the price differential to maintain the current range.
“But the company has now reached a point where it can no longer sustain those losses,” Idris stated.
He further said, “The prices of petroleum products are rising globally, and NNPCL, being a limited liability company, cannot continue to operate at a loss.”