Increased Local Refineries Won’t Reduce Petrol Price – NNPCL

Mele Kyari, the Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, has dismissed the belief that fuel prices will decrease as more refineries are established.

During an interview with Arise TV on Thursday, June 1, Kyari explained that despite the rise in local petrol production, the prices will not go down due to additional factors such as production costs being factored in by the refineries.

He said;

“There is a notion that if the product is processed locally, prices will reduce. Let me make it clear that it is not going to change anything. If you produce locally, the refineries will also input the cost of production and other things and it will be sold at the current price.”

“There will also be no subsidy when local production starts because there is no cash-to-back subsidy, this country no longer has the resources to continue with subsidy.”

During a subsequent interview with Channels Television, Kyari expressed his belief that the long queue observed at petrol stations nationwide would be resolved before Saturday, June 3rd.

“I don’t see it staying beyond another day or two, maximum. It can actually be on Saturday. We have supplies. The key trouble with the PMS system is supply, but I have supplies.

“There are over 810 million litres of PMS in depots, tanks and fuel stations across the country, so you don’t have the problem of transferring those from marine to land, you already have them on the ground.”