The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo, has ordered a clampdown on marketers hoarding or exploiting consumers following the recent surge in the price of Liquefied Petroleum Gas, popularly known as cooking gas.
This was disclosed in a statement signed by the minister’s spokesman, Louis Ibah, on Monday.
The prices of cooking gas rose recently from an average of N1,000 per kilogramme to about N2,000/kg in some locations. This followed the recent strike by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria during the rift between it and the Dangote refinery.
Almost two weeks after the strike was suspended, the prices of cooking gas refused to go down while the scarcity deepened.
Expressing concern over the development, Ekpo appealed for calm and understanding from Nigerians, assuring them that the situation was temporary and would normalise by next week.
According to him, the sharp increase in price was caused by two main factors: the industrial action by PENGASSAN at the Dangote refinery and the ongoing maintenance activities at the Nigeria LNG Train 4 facility.
The minister explained that the strike by PENGASSAN at the Dangote refinery temporarily halted LPG loading, while the maintenance work at NLNG reduced the volume of gas available in the domestic market.
Naijaonpoint reported last week that gas prices skyrocketed across Nigeria, with Lagos residents now paying between N2,500 and N3,000 per kilogram, as scarcity grips major cities.
In Lagos, the price of refilling a 12.5kg cylinder has surged to N21,600, while around Amuwo Odofin, the same quantity now costs as high as N26,000, equivalent to N2,080 per kg.
In Abuja, the price is slightly lower but still biting hard on households, with a 12.5kg cylinder going for about N20,000 (N1,600 per kg) around the Nyanya axis.
Many residents say several filling stations and gas plants have run out of stock, leaving only street vendors with limited supplies at inflated prices.
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reports that the average retail price for refilling a 5kg cylinder of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (Cooking Gas) decreased by 22.32% on a month-on-month basis from N8,243.79 recorded in July 2025 to N6,404.02 in August 2025.
The report also stated that the average retail price for refilling a 12.5kg Cooking Gas decreased by 21.42% on a month-on-month basis from N20,609.48 in July 2025 to N16,195.07 in August 2025.
NBS data shows that Nigeria’s headline inflation rate eased for the fifth consecutive month, dropping to 20.12% in August 2025 from 21.88% recorded in July 2025.