BEVERLY HILLS, March 12, (THEWILL) – Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, says there will be no increment in the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit until the conclusion of consultations with organised Labour.
In the same vein, the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) whose website display conveyed the idea of an increase, withdrew the information and said it “does not” fix the price of fuel.
The Minister gave the assurance while addressing newsmen on Friday in Lagos.
He said the clarification was necessitated by reports that the price of PMS had been increased to N212.61 per litre.
He said: “Irrespective of the source of that information, I want to assure you that it is completely untrue.
“Neither Mr President who is the Minister of Petroleum Resources nor myself who deputise for him as Minister of State has approved that petrol price should be increased by one naira. I therefore, urge you to disregard this misleading information.”
According to him, for the past few months, the government had been in consultation with organised Labour to find the least painful option to respond to the global rise of crude price which had inevitably led to increase in petrol prices.
He said it was unthinkable that the government would unilaterally abandon these discussions and act in the manner suggested by the information under reference.
Sylva maintained that cynicism and deceit had never been the trademark of the regime of President Buhari.
The Minister of State said: “I will like to equally assure you that the engagement with the organised labour and other stakeholders will continue even as the calculations to arrive at a reasonable price regime are being done; all in good faith and you will be availed of the final outcome at the appropriate time.
“Until then, all marketers are strongly advised to maintain the current pump price of PMS before the emergence of this unfortunate information.
“Those who may want to take advantage of this unfortunate information to extort Nigerians should not give in to such temptations as there are regulatory mechanisms that government can enforce to protect its citizens.
“In conclusion, I want to sincerely apologise to all Nigerians for any distress and inconvenience the unfortunate information might have caused.”
The Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) has said it “does not” fix the price of Premium Motor Spirit, otherwise known as petrol.
It said this in a statement issued on Friday to clarify a misunderstanding that followed a template it issued on its website.
Explaining the template, the PPPRA in the statement signed by the Executive Secretary, Abdulkadir Saidu, said the template was only indicative of current market trends and not an increase in the pump price of PMS.
The statement said, “The attention of the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) has been drawn to speculations about the increased pump price of PMS.
“The PPPRA by this release wishes to state clearly that the Guiding Prices posted on our website was only indicative of current market trends and do not translate to any increase in pump price of PMS. However, publications by the media to this effect have been misconstrued and thus misleading.
“The Agency wishes to remind the general public of the introduction of the Market Based Pricing Regime for PMS Regulation 2020 as gazetted by the Federal Government. Based on this regulation, prices are expected to be determined by market realities in line with the dictates of market forces.
“One of the conditions for the implementation of the Market-Based Pricing Regime for PMS Regulation 2020 is the monthly release of Guiding Price to reflect current market fundamentals.
“The PPPRA in line with its mandate to maintain constant surveillance over all key indices relevant to pricing policy, monitors market trend on a daily basis to determine Guiding Prices.
“The Agency is not unaware of the challenges with the supply of PMS due to some concerns leading NNPC to be the sole importer of PMS. PPPRA is also mindful of the current discussion going on between the government and the Organised Labour on the deregulation policy. While consultation with relevant stakeholders is ongoing, PPPRA does not fix or announce prices and therefore there is no price increase. The current PMS price is being maintained while consultations are being concluded.
“Even though market fundamentals for PMS in the past few months indicated upward price trends, the pump price has remained the same and we are currently monitoring the situation across retail outlets nationwide.
“While assuring the public of adequate products supply as the average PMS Day Sufficiency as of March 11, 2021, is over 35 days, the PPPRA pledges to continue to perform its statutory function in ensuring that the downstream sector remains vibrant as well as support both government and members of the public.”
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