The Federal Government has called on petroleum marketers to reduce the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), arguing that the decline in global crude oil prices should translate into cheaper fuel for Nigerian consumers.
The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri, appealed on Monday during a stakeholders’ meeting with marketers and key operators in the downstream petroleum sector.
Lokpobiri noted that the sharp fall in the price of Brent crude from about $118 per barrel earlier this year to below $70 per barrel should be reflected in retail fuel prices across the country.
“The price of fuel should reflect what is going on now,” the minister said, urging marketers to pass the benefits of lower international crude prices on to consumers.
He questioned why the pump prices of petrol and other refined petroleum products had remained high despite the significant drop in international replacement costs.
According to the minister, while the downstream sector has been deregulated, deregulation should not be interpreted as an opportunity for what he described as excessive profit-making at the expense of Nigerians.
Lokpobiri stressed that the government preferred dialogue with industry operators rather than imposing measures that might prove difficult to enforce.
“We would rather sit down with you and agree a practical framework than try to impose measures we cannot effectively enforce,” he said.
He added that marketers must work collectively to develop a framework that would lower fuel prices while ensuring the continued viability of businesses in the downstream sector.
The meeting, convened by the Ministry of Petroleum Resources through the sector regulator, brought together representatives from the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), Dangote Refinery, the Major Energies Marketers Association of Nigeria, the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria, the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, the Nigerian Association of Road Transport Owners and the Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria, among other stakeholders.
