NMDPRA insists aviation fuel supply stable, dismisses airlines’ price claims
The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has said there is sufficient aviation fuel supply in the country amid concerns over rising prices.
The clarification comes as domestic airlines threatened to suspend operations from April 20 over the increasing cost of aviation fuel, also known as Jet A1.
The Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) had earlier stated that the price of Jet A1 rose from N900 per litre as of February 28 to N3,300 per litre, representing an increase of over 300 per cent.
However, in a statement issued on Friday, George Ene-Ita, director of public affairs at NMDPRA, affirmed that Nigeria currently has enough aviation fuel stock to last 74 days.
“The NMDPRA wishes to assure the public that there is robust supply of aviation fuel in the country with the inland stock sufficiency of 12 days, and the refinery stock sufficiency of 62 days — making a total of 74 days of national sufficiency,” the statement read.
According to the regulator, this includes 12 days of inland stock and 62 days of refinery stock, assuring the public of adequate supply across the country.
The authority noted that aviation fuel pricing is fully deregulated and determined by market forces, similar to other petroleum products.
It added that the ex-gantry price at the Dangote Petroleum Refinery stood at N1,879 per litre as of April 16, slightly below the international benchmark of N1,900 per litre in Lagos, while retail prices range between N1,960 and N2,800 per litre, contrary to claims of N3,300 per litre.
