The Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC), Mele Kyari, has revealed that petrol consumption has fallen 30% in Nigeria. Kyari announced during a media briefing in Abuja where the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, revealed that Nigeria is planning to woo domiciliary account holders to utilize their funds in Nigeria.
Kyari noted that a reduction in petrol consumption is attributed to the subsidy removal by President Bola Tinubu.
The NNPC boss said the reduction in fuel demand has led to a 30% reduction in foreign exchange requirements for petrol imports. BusinessDay reports that Kyari stated that the $3 billion deal with AfreximBank was not a loan but a forward sale arrangement and explained that it had continued.
In July, the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Agency (NMDPRA) revealed that petrol consumed across Nigeria for H1 2023 stood at 11.26 billion litres.
Daily petrol consumption crashes nationwide
Punch reports that the authority stated that after the removal of the petrol subsidy on May 29 by President Bola Tinubu, it crashed to about 18.5 million litres daily as of June 2023. Data from NMDPRA shows that between January and May 28, the total amount of petrol consumed nationwide was about 9.9 million litres. Petrol consumption was put at 66.9 million litres for the 148 days, showing that Nigeria consumed an average of 66.9 million litres of petrol daily when the subsidy existed.
NNPC, however, asked marketers in Lagos to begin loading PMS at Pinnacle Depot in Ibeju Lekki following pipeline vandalism affecting supplies in Lagos and Ogun states. The Chairman of Independent Petroleum Marketers of Nigeria (IPMAN), to Legit.ng in a telephone conversation that the NNPC has asked the marketers to load at the depot until repairs are effect on the vandalised pipelines.
Meanwhile, Edun revealed the significant Forex held by Nigerians within and outside the country could be used to lift the economy. The Finance Minister stressed the need to create a climate that allows Nigerians to invest in the Nigerian economy rather than in foreign countries.