NewStats: 3,259,755 , 8,170,834 topics. Date: Sunday, 25 May 2025 at 10:27 PM 2sh1g

By Okechukwu Nnodim


About 75 per cent of filling stations across the country are currently out of business due to their inability to purchase diesel required to power their tankers and transport Motor Spirit, popularly called petrol, to their various outlets, oil marketers stated on Tuesday.

Marketers also stated that the cost of diesel would keep increasing and might hit N1,500/litre in the next two weeks if nothing drastic was done to curtail the current challenge faced by importers of the deregulated commodity.

Dealers under the aegis of the Natural Oil and Gas Suppliers Association told journalists in Abuja that this was also the reason why petrol scarcity had failed to abate in Abuja and neighbouring Nasarawa and Niger states, among others.

Speaking on behalf of the marketers, the National President, NOGASA, Bennett Korie, explained that the only solution to the current challenge was for the Federal Government to raise the pump price of petrol a little in order to reduce the huge foreign exchange used in PMS imports.

This, he said, would eventually free up some forex for diesel imports, a development that would impact positively on the rising cost of diesel, stressing that the product was currently sold at N850/litre.

He said, “If you go round now you will see that about 75 per cent of filling stations in Nigeria have gone out of business. There is no diesel to take fuel to their stations. All of them are going down.

“And it is not that the fuel is not there, but the cost of bringing it to the stations is too high. We know that the crisis between Ukraine and Russia has contributed badly, but the government has to do something fast, otherwise we are going to buy diesel in the next two weeks at N1000 to N1500/litre.”

Asked whether anything was being done to address the challenge, Korie replied, “As far as I am concerned nothing for now. The only way out, if you want to know, is that they (the government) should increase the price of fuel a little to reduce the money spent on PMS subsidy.

“I know Nigerians will not be happy to hear this, but this is the only solution. They should increase the price of fuel a little so that the savings will enable the Central Bank of Nigeria to have enough foreign exchange.

“You and I know that we import everything now in Nigeria. Diesel is an imported product and it is fully deregulated. So the importers are not getting dollars at the official CBN rate to import diesel. Everybody is going to the black market to get dollars to import their products and so you expect the price of diesel to be high.”

Korie states that if the government could bring down the rate at which it spends foreign exchange on PMS imports, this would will help other businessmen who import diesel to bring in products at low prices.

“So you need to increase fuel price a little in order to ensure that the dollars spent in importing petrol is reduced and there will be enough forex for importers of diesel and this will cut down the price of diesel.”

He also stated that this was the major reason why fuel queues had failed to clear in Abuja, as many filling stations lacked the funds to buy diesel at a high cost to run their trucks, transport petrol to the capital city and would still be made to sell PMS at N165/litre.

He explained that Lagos, Port Harcourt, Warri and other states closer to these areas had no queues because the three named cities had seaports and large depots for loading and distributing petroleum products.


Korie said, “The reason why you are having scarcity of petroleum products particularly in Abuja is as a result of the high cost of diesel. The price of diesel today in the market is N850/litre. You will also agree with me that the money being paid as bridging claims to transporters is not enough.

“The price is N850/litre and you are giving your driver 1,200 litres from Lagos to Abuja, if you do the calculation you will find out that the landing cost (for transporting the fuel) is about N40/litre.

“So if you add that to PMS, buying at the depot price and selling here, it is too high. So if your cost of bringing it in is at N40/litre and you bought it at N155/litre, when you add this you will get N195/litre. But you are to sell at N165/litre. So who will do that kind of business? It is already a loss-making business.”

Economic experts and operators in the oil sector had repeatedly called on the Federal Government to stop subsidising petrol in order to halt the humungous foreign exchange spent on its imports.

A former President, Association of National ants of Nigeria, Dr. Sam Nzekwe, told our correspondent that petrol subsidy was eating deep into the finances of Nigeria.

“Petrol subsidy is eating deep into our national treasury. It is affecting almost every aspect of the economy, because so much forex is used for its imports. It has to be stopped, but we must get our refineries working,” Nzekwe said.

Also, the Chief Executive Officer, Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise, Dr. Muda Yusuf, has also told our correspondent that subsidy in petrol should be cautiously and gradually removed based on its depleting effects on both federal and state governments’ revenues.

https://punchng.com/diesel-price-may-hit-n1500-litre-75-filling-stations-closed-marketers/

Price of diesel pushing as high as 1500/litre

LPG cooking gas is pushing 910/kg

Kerosene is closely following at 800/liter

Electricity collapsed to as low as 9MW in a country of over 200m population

Naira-Dollar exchange rate already hitting the ceiling at N640/$1 with most local manufacturers struggling to remain in business

Security of lives and properties is a no go area as it's not existing

Pray tell, how else can a country be cursed with worthless leaders like Buhari ?

And these are the legacy's someone wants to build on if elected ?

I love APC deep down but BUHARI is clueless.

As a Petroleum Minister and all this happening under BUHARI and his Government, I have to apologize to those I have rebuke for calling him clueless.

sms4sure:
As a Petroleum Minister and all this happening under BUHARI and his Government, I have to apologize to those I have rebuke for calling him clueless.

best apology would be to actively campaign for peter obi to help us out of this mess

I laugh in Peter Obi.

2023, the choice is between Peter Obi and Bread for 3000, Diesel 3500, Dollar 2500.

Lets see how many of you Tinubu can save.

Pls allowe us to to refined our diesel locally

Maxymilliano:
Price of diesel pushing as high as 1500/litre

LPG cooking gas is pushing 910/kg

Kerosene is closely following at 800/liter

Electricity collapsed to as low as 9MW in a country of over 200m population

Naira-Dollar exchange rate already hitting the ceiling at N640/$1 with most local manufacturers struggling to remain in business

Security of lives and properties is a no go area as it's not existing

Pray tell, how else can a country be cursed with worthless leaders like Buhari ?

And these are the legacy's someone wants to build on if elected ?

Na u even get time and ion to dey analyze these whole stuff. As for me, na all of us go suffer am. And we still dey suffer am dey go.
Suffer never tire us that's just d truth bcs another ancestor is coming to take over.

All this illiterate Peter obi local trader unknown candidate will come here to say rubbish about APC and buhari... forgetting that diesel and gas is cheap in Nigeria





Local unknown candidate



North 2023

Buhari is a natural disaster just like hurricane, earthquake, COVID

Buhari don give up finally...the puppet that was appointed the chairman of the economic sustainability committee,as soon as he was appointed in year 2020 was when the worst of Nigeria started.some foolish ones here are still advocating him for presidency.the state of the economy today is what we gain from osinbajo being in charge of the economy cos he is in charge.

dre11:




https://punchng.com/diesel-price-may-hit-n1500-litre-75-filling-stations-closed-marketers/


Lalasticlala

Buhari have destroyed this country! BAT wants to continue same wickedness!

Ripple effect of nosediving naira coupled with a cu-rsed leadership

Sai baba!!
Where are the sai baba wailers?! comman see the change u voted for

Production companies will this high cost on consumers.
May Buhari never happen to us again
No greater curse than someone that says Tinubu will be worse than Buhari.....

This one doesn't concern since he doesn't have nor have plans of buying a truck/diesel powered machine.

He's okay with his deep freezer where he sells pure water and minerals

Someone should help me with that his pic abeg

Only a united People's Revolution will salvage this country. Nothing else.
But big question is: Can Nigeria ever be united in purpose?

Nawa ooo

Issokay!!!

Reminds of a class guy that was recently sacked from his banking job because of rising cost of business which sky rocketed with recent increase in diesel price, YET HE GOES AROUND CAMPAIGNING FOR APC!

Happy we have talked sense into him!

No dey scare us... goodbye to subsidy...we will survive

Let me see the idiot that will come here and say we should vote for Tinibu and Atiku.. na amadioha go stroke the person..

Maxymilliano:
Price of diesel pushing as high as 1500/litre

LPG cooking gas is pushing 910/kg

Kerosene is closely following at 800/liter

Electricity collapsed to as low as 9MW in a country of over 200m population

Naira-Dollar exchange rate already hitting the ceiling at N640/$1 with most local manufacturers struggling to remain in business

Security of lives and properties is a no go area as it's not existing

Pray tell, how else can a country be cursed with worthless leaders like Buhari ?

And these are the legacy's someone wants to build on if elected ?

And despite all these, Nigerians are hell bent on voting APC come 2023, even after failing woefully for 8 years.

If Peter Obi doesn't win next year's election, Nigerians would resort to begging in order to eat, I see companies closing down due high running cost, I see various governors unable to pay salaries, I see federal government establishments owing salaries as well.

This I have seen.

Ni

Just take a look at

After u will come tell me make I vote old idiotic man from Lagos mk diesel reach 5k/litre



Me and ma family
Shall vote peter oBI

Like for peter OBI share for peter oBI

adioolayi:
No dey scare us... goodbye to subsidy...we will survive

Please what have they done with the proceeds of the subsidy they removed??
How have they ed for it? They will tell us they used 100 billion to feed school children from it, while ASUU needs less than 50 billion to call off the strike!
Bunch of jokers!!

Buhari should be arrested I swear.

There was a country.

Banks do not have dollars to pay customers, you either get paid half of the amount you requested or try another branch.

It's crazy in Nigeria.

May God help

If men for creek dey refine Crude Oil with crude equipments, a whole Fed. Gov. of Naija dey do wetin with over 2 refineries?

Blackfire:
All this illiterate Peter obi local trader unknown candidate will come here to say rubbish about APC and buhari... forgetting that diesel and gas is cheap in Nigeria





Local unknown candidate



North 2023

I'm taking this as sarcasm.