NNPC reports 30% drop in petrol consumption, decrease in forex demands
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) has announced a significant decrease in petrol consumption, with a 30% drop recorded across the country. Mele Kyari, the Group Managing Director of NNPC, made this revelation during a media briefing in Abuja. The decrease in fuel demand has also led to a corresponding decline in foreign exchange requirements for petrol imports.
Kyari attributed the reduction in petrol consumption to the removal of subsidies by President Bola Tinubu. As a result of this decrease, there has been a 30% reduction in foreign exchange demands associated with 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.
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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.
In related news, Wale Edun, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, highlighted the need to attract domiciliary account holders to utilize their funds in Nigeria, aiming to boost the economy. Edun emphasized the importance of creating an environment that encourages Nigerians to invest in the country rather than abroad.
The Finance Minister stressed the need to create a climate that allows Nigerians to invest in the Nigerian economy rather than in foreign countries.
Edun said: “We need to provide the environment that brings those funds home for investment in the Nigerian economy.”
Per the Finance Minister, the palliatives provided by the Nigerian government would go a long way to ease the pains of subsidy removal.
He said the funds are released gradually, with the initial N2 billion given to the states to prevent inflationary pressures and maintain stability.
FG Says monthly petrol consumption dropped by 18.5 million litres as depot prices crash
Legit.ng reported that according to a federal government statement, the volume of petrol consumption across the country in the first half of 2023 was put at 11.26 billion.
However, after the subsidy was removed from the product, petrol consumption dropped by an average of 18.5 million litres daily in June.
Data released on Sunday, July 9, 2023, by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (MDPRA) indicates that between January 1 and May 28, 2023, before the deregulation period, petrol consumption was about 9.9 billion litres.