The Nigerian Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers (NALPGAM) has debunked reports of an official increase in the price of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), commonly known as cooking gas, attributing the recent price hikes to opportunistic retailers taking advantage of temporary scarcity.
Speaking on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Wednesday, the association’s national president, Oladapo Olatunbosun, clarified that the market price of LPG has not been officially raised by producers or regulators.
“The price of gas has not gone up. No increment has been done officially,” Olatunbosun said. “What we are witnessing is that some people are exploiting a slight shortage in supply and the resulting surge in demand to make undue profit. That’s wrong, and as an association, we frown at it.”
He expressed optimism that normalcy in supply and pricing would return in the coming days, assuring consumers that they would continue to access cooking gas at reasonable rates once supply stabilizes.
Olatunbosun linked the ongoing scarcity to irregular supply from the Dangote Refinery and disruptions caused by the strike action of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN).
According to him, Dangote Refinery had been supplying about 50 trucks of LPG daily, catering to major parts of the southwest and some areas in the north.
However, a recent maintenance exercise at the refinery slowed down loading operations, causing delays of up to two weeks for marketers.
“Trucks were spending 13 to 14 days at the refinery before getting products,” he said. “This delay disrupted the flow of gas into the market. During that period, many marketers switched to Apapa depots, which helped cushion the effect.”
The situation worsened, he said, when the PENGASSAN strike halted product offloading at depots, as there were no officials available to supervise inspections and clearances.
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“Dangote didn’t stop production, but vessels could not be discharged. Depots in Apapa ran dry, and marketers had no alternative source,” Olatunbosun explained.
He noted that the combined effects of the refinery downtime and the strike caused a shortfall that lasted about five days, significantly affecting supply and prices.
The NALPGAM president assured Nigerians that the situation has started improving, with vessels expected to offload new LPG cargoes before the weekend.
“By the grace of God, in the next few days, things will normalise,” Olatunbosun said.
He urged retailers to desist from arbitrary price hikes and assured consumers that the association is working closely with producers and regulators to ensure fair pricing and steady supply across the country.