Nigerians might see a reduction in the price of Premium Motor Spirit, commonly known as petrol following a reduction in the landing cost of the product.
According to a report by ThePUNCH, the landing cost of the product on the Nigerian shores reduced from N936.75 per litre to N900.28 per litre on Thursday, The PUNCH reports.
This reduction in price which represents a decrease of 3.62 percent is contained in the latest data released by the Major Energies Marketers Association of Nigeria.
Earlier this week according to the Newspaper, the price had dropped to N890.43 even as fresh findings showed that oil marketers imported 90,308 metric tonnes of fuel between Tuesday, December 10, 2024, and Friday, December 13, 2024.
Going by the conversion rate of 1,341 litres to one metric tonne, it, therefore, implies that the marketers brought in about 121.1 million litres of petrol within three days.
The decline in landing cost, which reflects the price of importing and distributing the product, indicates some relief in terms of global market fluctuations and supply chain factors. However, the retail price of petrol in Nigeria is N1,060.
Crude oil prices and foreign exchange rates are the major factors that determine the cost of refined petroleum products, including petrol, diesel, aviation fuel, and kerosene, among others.
Earlier this week, crude oil refiners and other players in the downstream sector stated that the dollar charges on locally refined Premium Motor Spirit, popularly called petrol, coupled with the cost of importing crude are major reasons for the high cost of the product when compared to imported PMS.
The price of petrol produced by the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, according to dealers on Thursday, was N970/litre. Oil marketers had also stated earlier that the price of refined petrol from Port Harcourt Refining Company was N1,030/litre.
The development suggests that imported fuel, excluding regulatory fees, is less expensive than domestically refined products.
An analysis of the data released by major marketers showed that the daily spot price of estimated import parity into tank costs was N900.28 from N890 recorded on Wednesday, while a 30-day average price was reduced to N945.23 on Thursday from N946.38 on Wednesday and N958.89 recorded last week.
Brent crude oil price was benchmarked at $73.52 per barrel from $72.06 per barrel it traded the previous day and an exchange rate of N1,533 per dollar. Ex-depot price range in Lagos remained between N970 and N1,050.
Meanwhile, oil marketers, taking advantage of this price reduction, have imported a total sum of 121.1 million litres to meet domestic supply.
