The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, NMDPRA, has said there are no subsidies in the oil and gas sector, as the country operates a completely deregulated market. The director of Public Affairs Department, NMDPRA, Mr George Ene-Italy gave the clarification in Abuja on Friday, in reaction to recent reports that the federal government had removed subsidies or increased the price of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG).
CNG refilling stations in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) had last week increased the product from N230 to N380 for one Standard Cubic Metre (SCM), amid long queues. The increase in price is believed to be connected to scarcity of the product due to lack of infrastructure, leading to long queues at refilling stations, especially in the FCT and Lagos. According to Ene-Italy, “What we have is a baseline price for our gas resources, including CNG as dictated by the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).”
He said as long as the prevailing CNG market price conformed to the baseline, then the pricing is legitimate. Meanwhile, the Presidential Initiative on Compressed Natural Gas (P-CNGI) has said that no directive or policy had been issued by the federal government to alter CNG pump prices.
The P-CNGI emphasised that the recent pump price adjustments announced by certain operators were purely private-sector decisions and not the outcome of any government directive or policy. For clarity, it said while pricing matters fell under the purview of the appropriate regulatory agencies, no directive or policy had been issued by the federal government to alter CNG pump prices.
The initiative said its mandate, as directed by President Bola Tinubu, was to catalyse the development of the CNG mobility market and ensure the adoption of a cheaper, cleaner, and more sustainable alternative fuel and diesel nationwide.
