Nigeria will reduce gasoline costs and scrap a fuel subsidy under a<\/p>\n
pricing mechanism to come into effect from January, Petroleum Minister of
\nState Emmanuel Kachikwu said.<\/p>\n
Prices will fall to 85 naira ($0.44) per liter from 87 naira, Kachikwu,
\nwho is also the group managing director of state-owned Nigerian National
\nPetroleum Corp., told reporters while on a visit to a refinery in the
\ncountry\u2019s southern oil hub of Port Harcourt on Friday, according to a
\nstatement sent by the petroleum ministry.<\/p>\n
Nigeria, Africa\u2019s biggest oil producer, relies on fuel imports to meet
\ndomestic needs since its refineries produce a fraction of their 445,000
\nbarrels-per-day capacity after decades of poor maintenance, corruption and
\nmismanagement. The refinery in Port Harcourt will begin production next
\nweek after repairs are completed, according to Kachikwu.
\nTo keep the country supplied, the NNPC, as the state oil company is known,
\nhas relied on imports by other fuel retailers, who get refunded the
\ndifference between their costs and the fixed pump prices. It also has
\nagreements with several offshore refiners to swap refined products for
\ncrude.<\/p>\n
While tumbling oil prices have slashed Nigeria\u2019s revenue and roiled its
\ncurrency and stock market, it\u2019s also provided an opportunity for the
\ngovernment to end the subsidies that cost as much as $7 billion a year.
\nThe finance ministry said last year that $60 per barrel was the break-even
\npoint at which there is no more need to subsidize fuel costs.<\/p>\n
Widespread fraud and corruption and declining oil revenue have made it
\nimperative for the government to cancel the subsidies, Kachikwu said. An
\nattempt by the previous government to end them in 2011 led to a week of
\nstrikes and protests across the country, forcing their partial
\nreinstatement.<\/p>\n
President Muhammadu Buhari, who took office in May, had continued the
\nsubsidies which -at over 1 trillion naira – accounted for almost a quarter
\nof the 2015 budget.<\/p>\n
Reuters<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Nigeria will reduce gasoline costs and scrap a fuel subsidy under a pricing mechanism to come into effect from January, Petroleum Minister of State Emmanuel Kachikwu said. Prices will fall…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":42474,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"","_lmt_disable":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[17],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-45283","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-exclusive"],"yoast_head":"\n