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The World Bank has stated that the current price of petrol in Nigeria should be around ₦750 per litre.
The bank said the ₦650 Nigerians pay per litre suggests that the Federal Government still pays for fuel subsidy.
Speaking in Abuja on Wednesday, December 13, 2023, during his presentation of the Nigeria Development Update, titled, ‘Turning The Corner (from reforms and renewed hope, to results), the bank’s Lead Economist for Nigeria, Alex Sienaert, said with the current market conditions, the price of petrol in Nigeria should be higher.
He said, “It does seem like petrol prices are not fully adjusting to market conditions so that hints at the partial return of the subsidy, if we estimate what is the cost reflective of retail PMS price of the would-be and assuming that importation is done at the official FX rate.
“Of course, the liberalisation is happening with the parallel rates, which is the main supplier, the price would be even higher. These are just estimates to give you a sense of what cost-reflective pricing most likely looks like.
“We think the price of petrol should be around ₦750 per litre more than the ₦650 per litre currently paid by Nigerians.”
It would be recalled that President Bola Tinubu announced the removal of subsidy on petroleum on Monday, 29, 2023, in his inauguration speech.
The development prompted unprecedented hikes in the cost of petrol and other commodities across the country.