By Chinelo Obogo
The NNPC Ltd has released estimated prices of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), also known as petrol which it said was obtained from the Dangote Refinery in its retail stations across the country.
In a statement on Monday, NNPC’s Chief Corporate Communications Officer, Olufemi Soneye, insisted that that PMS prices are no longer determined by the Nigerian government but are negotiated directly between the parties involved, in a fully commercialised process in line with the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).
The estimated prices shows that petrol obtained from Dangote Refinery will sell for N1,019/ litre in states like Borno and N950 in Lagos.
The statement read: “The NNPC Ltd can confirm that it is paying Dangote Refinery in USD for September 2024 PMS offtake, as Naira transactions will only commence on October 1st, 2024. The NNPC Ltd assures that if the quoted pricing is disputed, it will be grateful for any discount from the Dangote Refinery, which will be passed on 100% to the general public. Attached to this statement are the estimated pump prices of PMS (obtained from the Dangote Refinery) across NNPC Retail Stations in the country, based on September 2024 pricing.”
Soneye had on Sunday said the NNPC Ltd purchased petrol from Dangote Refinery at N898 per litre but Dangote in a statement by its Chief Branding and Communications Officer, Mr.Anthony Chiejina,
described NNPC’s statement as “misleading and mischievous”. He said the company sold to NNPC in dollars because the current crude was bought in dollars.
Chiejine said, “This statement is both misleading and mischievous, deliberately aimed at undermining the milestone achievement recorded today, September 15, 2024, towards addressing energy insufficiency and insecurity, which has bedeviled the economy in the past 50 years.
“We urge Nigerians to disregard this malicious statement and await a formal announcement on the pricing, by the Technical Sub-Committee on Naira-based crude sales to local refineries, appointed by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, which will commence on October 1, 2024, bearing in mind that our current stock of crude was procured in dollars.
“It should also be noted that we sold the products to NNPC in dollars with a lot of savings against what they are currently importing. With this action, there will be petrol in every local government area of the country regardless of their remote nature. We assure Nigerians of availability of quality petroleum products and putting an end to the endemic fuel scarcity in the country.”