The continuous hike in the price of gas may be ending soon as the Federal Government has identified two critical factors responsible for the increase.
According to the minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo, factors responsible for the recent hike in the price of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) include the difficulty faced by marketers in sourcing foreign exchange for imports and the insufficient product supply to the domestic market by producers.
The minister made this known when he announced the establishment of a committee under the Nigerian Midstream Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) to champion the government’s intervention in the industry.
The meeting had in attendance, stakeholders in the gas industry including top officials of Chevron Nigeria Limited led by Sansay Narasimi and other parties from the Nigerian Midstream Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) led by its Chief Executive Officer, Farouk Ahmed and some Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) officials.
Recent data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has shown that in October, the price of a 12.5 kg LPG cylinder increased by 14% on a month-on-month basis from ₦9,247.40 in September 2023 to ₦10,545.87 in October 2023.
The data further noted that the average retail price for a 5kg cylinder of cooking gas increased by 8.89% on a month-on-month basis from ₦4,189.96 recorded in September 2023 to ₦4,562.51 in October 2023.
The minister, who noted the President’s interests in the gas crisis also warned LPG marketers against exporting the product at this critical period.
“Public interest is the overriding interest all over the world for the government, the demand for LPG will increase as we approach December…you have a public service obligation to collaborate with the government to ensure security of gas supply.
“We need to therefore bend backwards and find solutions, to ensure that we have sufficient supply and stability in-country and that Nigerians have gas,” Ekpo said.
The committee which will be headed by the chief executive of NMDPRA has been mandated to give recommendations on how to reduce the price of the product and also, to boost supplies within a week.