Oil marketers under the aegis of the Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria have said access to the dollar at N306 will enable them to resume importation of Premium Motor Spirit (petrol).
The marketers also said there was an urgent need for the Federal Government, through the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency, to increase the margins on petrol to encourage them to make more investments.
According to the petrol pricing template of the PPPRA, margins for retailers and dealers are N6 and N2.36 per litre while transporters’ allowance is N3.36 per litre.
The Chairman, MOMAN, Mr Adetunji Oyetunji, at a press briefing in Lagos on Friday, stated the stand of the marketers.
He said, “We call on the government to seize the opportunity of these lower oil prices to either give us an immediate margin increase or remove subsidy because today, the landing cost of petrol is much lower than the approved pump price.
“So, it gives a unique opportunity to be able to get out of this subsidy business. It happened like that in 2016 when oil price dropped significantly but we didn’t seize that opportunity.”
The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation has been the sole importer of petrol into the country for more than two years, after private oil marketers stopped importing the commodity due to crude price fluctuations, among other issues.
The Executive Secretary/Chief Executive Officer of MOMAN, Mr Clement Isong, said with foreign exchange N306/$, the expected open market price of petrol would be N141 per litre.
He added, “We don’t have forex at N306/$1. Forex at N360/$1, which is what we have access to, puts the product into tank at N142. If you then add the distribution, cost the pump price will be N164.”
