…Ex-depot rate soars to N888
By Adewale Sanyaolu
Nigerians already grappling with the soaring cost of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), commonly known as petrol, may have to brace for further hikes as depot operators on Tuesday raised the ex-depot price from N855 to between N870 and N888 per litre.
Ex-depot price refers to the price at which depot owners sell the product to retail outlets and fuel marketers.
It’s the price before transportation costs and other margins are added by the marketers. Essentially, it’s the wholesale price at the depot, before it reaches the consumer.
A check by Daily Sun on petroleumprice.ng, an online digital platform that tracks petroleum product prices in real-time, indicated that A&E depot took the lead at N888 per litre, followed by Sahara at N870, EMADEB, Mainland, AIPEC, and Matrix at N865.
Others are Menj at N865, ZAMSON at N863, and Aiteo at N862 per litre.
Already, the NNPC retail outlets had taken the lead from Sunday, adjusting their pumps from N865 to N890.
By Monday morning, it was adjusted further to N900 per litre, and by Tuesday morning, it had gone up to N915 per litre.
The impact of the hike in ex-depot price has been reflected at the pumps, with most NNPC retail outlets in Lagos selling at N915 per litre.
In Abuja, most filling stations were selling at N970 per litre.
Findings by Daily Sun in Benin City, Edo State, showed a price rate of N950 per litre; Ibadan at N925; Calabar and Uyo at N930 per litre.
The hike in fuel prices may not be unconnected with the recent alarm raised by the National President of the Petroleum Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN), Mr. Billy Gillis-Harry, warning Nigerians against unrealistic fuel prices, which he said don’t reflect current market realities.
Harry warned further that the trend is a strong indication of growing bad market behaviour that should be checked by the relevant regulatory agencies.
The PETROAN President said various marketers, in a bid to remain in business, are dropping prices below market average.
He argued that the market behaviour was as a result of the consistent drop in petrol prices by Dangote Refinery, which is already threatening the existence of other market operators in the downstream sector.
The Dangote Petroleum Refinery, in the last two months, has dropped petrol prices more than 10 times.
“Those prices you see that are around N815 or N820 per litre don’t reflect market or economic realities. They cannot stand the test of time.
The big player in the industry is to be blamed for this unhealthy rivalry/competition in the market.
But let it be known that everyone is bleeding. The industry shouldn’t be a monopoly. Let it be known that if the big player is ready to lose money, others are equally ready as well,” he said.
According to a market survey on petroleumprice.ng, a portal that tracks petroleum product prices in real-time, Aiteo, Sahara, Menj, Rainoil, First Fortune, Parker, Zamson, TSL, and NIPCO put their prices at N819, N825, N815, N825, N839, and N825 per litre respectively.
On the other hand, the retail prices of some key Dangote partners, which include Ardova, MRS, Heyden, and others, had risen above market average, hitting N860 per litre.
If not urgently addressed, he said Nigerians and members of the consuming public would be the ultimate losers through all forms of anti-market behaviours.
Some of those behaviours include under-dispensing, off-spec products, and, in some extreme cases, the dumping of substandard/toxic fuel.
He advised that market prices should be subjected to scrutiny by the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) to check market abuse.
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