I’ won’t feel bad buying petrol at N300/litre — Buhari’s Minister
Minister of State for Petroleum Resources Timipre Sylva has expressed his readiness to buy a litre of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) also known as petroleum, at N300 after leaving office.
He also said the rising price of kerosene is beyond the federal government’s intervention because the product is already deregulated.
The minister spoke Monday in Abuja at the PMB Scorecard (2015-2023) media parley to showcase the achievements in the petroleum sector.
The event, put together by the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture, is being used to showcase the activities of the Buhari administration in all sectors.
Asked if he would be comfortable buying fuel N300/litre or more after leaving office, the minister said: “If you ask me how I will feel as a private citizen to buy petroleum products at N300 per litre, frankly, if you ask me, I will say I won’t feel bad knowing the actual situation.
“And if you compare Nigeria to other countries and you would also understand and you also convert N300 that you are talking about to other currencies, then, you would probably understand.
“You know a lot of you travel to the United Kingdom, a lot of you travel to the US. How much do you buy petroleum products? Even in Saudi Arabia and in Arab communities that produce crude oil. Convert it to what we are buying in Nigeria in terms of Naira, you will find out that we are not really doing too badly.
“But unfortunately, we are still in a subsidized regime which all of us know and we have come to a national consensus now that this subsidy is not sustainable. But we will get there. Together, we will get there.
“Because many times, you’re the first people to ask how we are able to sustain this, and then, when we want to take out the subsidy, the same people will protest.
“Sometime, we don’t understand what the average person wants. But what is desirable as far as we are concerned is to ensure that petroleum price is market-driven. That way, it will also drive a lot of investments.
“A lot of people who will like to invest, private sector investment who like to invest in this sector, but under a subsidized regime, who is going to invest? If you build a refinery, how is your refinery going to make profit under a subsidy regime? But if you have a market-driven situation, you will see that a lot of investors will come and of course, there will be a lot of refineries and this problem of access to petroleum products will be a thing of the past.”
On the likelihood of a litre dropping to N40, Sylva that is not realistic, “except a dollar exchanges for one naira.”
On kerosene, a major cooking energy for the masses, he said: “Kerosene, which is the fuel for the average household, is already a deregulated product. It is not necessarily within the purview of the government but a now a commercial decision. Companies will import and sell kerosene at a commercial rate. It is a deregulated product”.
