NNPC HIKE FUEL PUMP PRICE

FUEL QUEUES RETURN

Against public apprehensions of a likely hike in the pump price of PMS, otherwise called petrol, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has reportedly hiked the price of a litre of petrol at its retail outlets by N4.

This will be coming at a time Nigerians are groaning under harsh living condition especially with the current economic recession in the country.

When the price of PMS was increased from #87 per litre to #145 by the Buhari administration in a move it described as the removal of subsidy, the NNPC retail outlets were selling at #141/ litre and with this hike, the NNPC retail outlets will now be selling the product at N145 per litre since May 2016 that the Federal Government set the amount as the “maximum price” of petrol in the country, like every other dealer across the nation. What this implies is that, other retailers will now have the urge to also increase their pump price too.

The apex oil firm was reported to have raised the rate as at the 1^st of November with the prices hovering between N143 and N141 per litre at NNPC and affiliate stations in major cities and even less at stations in the hinterlands.

According to reports monitored from Daily Trust, the hike in price was confirmed that the NNPC Mega stations in Kano and Lagos states which have begun to sell fuel at the stipulated price of N145 per litre.

Garba Deen Muhammad, spokesman for the NNPC, while speaking on the development, revealed that there was no rule that compels any marketer including the NNPC to sell at a particular price.

“A price regime was introduced between N135 and N145. So, you can sell anywhere within that range. What you are seeing is interplay of market forces."