We Didn’t Increase Petrol Price, Marketers Did, Says Nigerian Government

The Federal Government on Monday insisted that it had not raised the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit, popularly called petrol, above the regulated cost of N165/litre.

It said the hike in the cost of the commodity, currently between N175/litre and N230/litre, depending on the location of purchase, was done by oil marketers. The government, however, could not explain why it was not enforcing the approved price.

Oil marketers across the country recently raised the price of petrol above the approved N165/litre rate without any official approval by the government. This was despite the fact that the cost of commodity was still being regulated.

The marketers had argued that the N165/litre approved price was not sustainable and was contributory to the scarcity of petrol in many locations nationwide.

They eventually hiked the pump price of petrol and had maintained the price increase for several weeks running without any resistance by the government.