PETROAN tells civil servants demanding N500/litre petrol to build their own refineries
PETROAN today dismissed civil servants' demand for N500 per litre petrol as economically impossible, stating such a price would require 'a miracle' given current market realities. The association's National President, Billy Gillis-Harry, warned that returning to fuel subsidy-era pricing would push Nigeria back to financial brink, and urged those advocating for N500/litre to build their own refineries and retail outlets instead.
His comments come as petrol currently sells for N1,325 per litre following Dangote Refinery's recent N25 price reduction amid falling crude oil prices. The Federal Government, through NMDPRA, is meanwhile meeting with oil and gas stakeholders to discuss competitive fuel pricing frameworks.
PETROAN argues that the N500 demand ignores downstream market costs including crude oil prices, refining expenses, distribution logistics, and retail margins that collectively make such a low price unsustainable without state subsidies—which Gillis-Harry notes previously 'pushed the country to the brink.'
With civil servants under the Joint National Public Service Negotiating Council leading the petition to President Tinubu, the exchange highlights the growing tension between public demand for affordable fuel and industry assertions about production cost realities in Nigeria's deregulated downstream sector.