Against the backdrop of the continuous depreciation of the naira, marketers who talked to Vanguard yesterday stated that the conclusion would be that their cost has also grown beyond the number that was used in determining current pump rates.
The current exchange rate of N661 per dollar was used to calculate the current national average pump price of N500 per litre.

Already, data from the Vanguard have showed that the majority of big oil marketers have changed their rates to range between N492-495 in Lagos. This is in contrast to the N488 positions that were initially released by the sector shortly after President Bola Tinubu stated that the government will no longer provide a subsidy on May 29, 2023.

In addition, the majority of independent marketers in Lagos have raised their prices to an average of N515, but the price of gasoline at the pump has increased to over N650 in areas outside of Lagos.

According to the merchants, given that the exchange rate at the Investors and Exporters (I&E) foreign exchange window has been hovering around N770 per dollar since the middle of last week, the price of gasoline at the pump is likely to reach N550 by the beginning of the following month.

This comes at a time when the marketers are beginning the process of importing the product in accordance with the new market regulation.

However, research conducted by Vanguard yesterday revealed that as a consequence of the shifts brought about by currency, oil marketers are still finding the current commercial climate to be highly unclear, which makes it difficult for them to collect financing for the importation of the commodity.
This demonstrated that despite the fact that a few oil marketers had begun talking with the banks, such engagements were being thwarted by the existing uncertainty that exists in the commercial environment.
The oil marketers, on the other hand, have stated that they would not give up and that efforts to import commercial volumes of gasoline will be increased.

Yesterday, the Chief Executive Officer of Ardova Plc, Mr. Olumide Adeosun, who also serves as the Chairman of MOMAN, provided his commentary on the recent development by stating, "It takes a little bit of time to arrange the forex, which is still not optimal at the present time."

"Operations are also impacted by logistics, the availability of vessels that are suitable for the job, and other issues. In spite of this, we anticipate receiving funds from organizations other than NNPC Limited in the month of July 2023.''
In addition, he mentioned prices and remarked, in reference to them, "Prices may go up before they come down in any event."

Adetunji Oyebanji, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of 11 Plc, who is also a former Chairman of MOMAN, has acknowledged that his company has planned measures to import the product, emphasizing that "it is likely to be towards the middle of July 2023."

At the very least for the next month, this indicates that big and independent oil marketers will continue to rely on NNPC Limited to bring in the product from its source on the worldwide market.

Also Read: NNPCL Issues Directive To Marketers On Refund, New Price

Mike Osatuyi, the National Operations Controller of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, IPMAN, who acknowledged that members had not resumed importation, stated that "We now need more funds to put into the business than we did before." This is in line with the sentiments expressed by large marketers. Keep in mind that the exchange rate of the naira has also skyrocketed, going from over N400 to over N700 for each dollar.At this time, we are having discussions with the banks. It will take some time to finalize all of the many negotiations that need to take place before we can secure the necessary funding for the importation.

According to information that was acquired by Vanguard yesterday, the price of gasoline at the ex-depot level has significantly increased over the course of the last few weeks.

To be more specific, it stated that the price of gasoline at the ex-depot had increased to N515 per litre from over N400 per litre as of yesterday, which caused the price of gasoline at the pump to go even more to over N500 per litre, up from N488 in Lagos and the surrounding areas.

Olufemi Adewole, the Executive Secretary of the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria (DAPPMAN), stated that the owners of the depots are not required to keep a specific pricing at any given time in a telephone conversation with Vanguard.
He stated, "There is no uniform ex-depot price; each marketer, based on its individual market fundamentals, determines its own ex-depot price, and any inefficient marketer loses customers because they'll move to the cheaper, more efficient marketer."

It was also discovered that several oil marketers have taken advantage of the volatility in the downstream sector to do brisk business, including the manipulation of pumps and diversion of oil in order to make the most profit possible.

When Vanguard attempted to get in touch with Farouk Ahmed, Chief Executive of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), he did not answer.

However, the government recently announced that it had granted permits to six different businesses so that they could begin fuel imports into the country.
Although the government agency has refused to disclose the names of the businesses, it has been determined that Eterna Oil Plc, Emadeb, and Asharami Energy are three of the six businesses that have been awarded licenses.