The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has announced that Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), commonly known as petrol, from the Dangote Refinery will begin to flood the market starting on September 15, 2024.
This development follows the refinery’s commencement of petrol refining earlier in the week.
In a statement signed by the NNPCL’s Chief Corporate Communications Officer, Olufemi Soneye, on Thursday in Abuja, the company clarified that petrol prices would now be determined by market forces.
The statement addressed speculations about price control, reiterating that the downstream sector had been fully deregulated and that NNPCL would no longer fix fuel prices.
Adedapo Segun, NNPCL’s Executive Vice President of Downstream, emphasised that foreign exchange (forex) illiquidity had been a major factor influencing PMS price fluctuations, which are now regulated by the free market as mandated by the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).
Segun also noted that the current fuel scarcity should ease within a few days as more filling stations recalibrate their systems and resume selling PMS.
He cited Section 205 of the PIA, which established that petroleum prices are governed by market forces rather than government intervention. The exchange rate, he added, significantly impacts fuel prices.
Regarding the supply of petrol from the Dangote Refinery, Segun stated that NNPCL was preparing for the September 15 timeline when products would be available for distribution.
He assured Nigerians that NNPCL is working closely with fuel marketers to ensure stations remain open and well-stocked to meet demand, while measures are being taken to prevent product diversions.
Segun’s comments come on the heels of the Federal Government’s announcement of an impending boost in petrol supply over the weekend, as vessels had started offloading while reaffirming that PMS prices would not be fixed by the government.
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