The General Managing Director (GMD) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mele Kyari says Nigerians may likely pay more for petrol in April.
The Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) had earlier released a template increasing petrol price to N212 per litre but it was later deleted.
Speaking with journalists at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, Kyari said the NNPC can no longer bear the burden.
He also said the NNPC pays between N100 billion and N120 billion a month to keep the pump price at the current level, insisting that market forces must be allowed to determine the pump price of petrol in the country.
The NNPC GMD explained that while the actual cost of importation and handling charges amount to N234 per litre, the government is selling at N162 per litre.
“The price could have been anywhere between N211 and N234 to the litre. The meaning of this is that consumers are not paying for the full value of the PMS that we are consuming and therefore someone is paying that cost,” he said.
“As we speak today, the difference is being carried in the books of NNPC and I can confirm to you that NNPC may no longer be in a position to carry that burden.”
