The Federal Government has said that the fuel smuggling from Nigeria to neighbouring countries has come to stay.... CLICK TO READ THE FULL NEWS HERE▶▶
Fuel price in Nigeria is at a record high with prices in the neighbourhood of N650 and N1000 per litre.
Despite, smugglers of the product are still in business, sneaking it to Benin Republic and Republic of Niger for more pecuniary gain, at times under the nose of conniving security officers.
The trade is fuelled by the fact that in Cotonou petrol was priced at 700CFA per litre, which converts to approximately N1,850.
The federal government said, there’s no end in sight to the business, partly because security operatives are involved and fuel prices in neighbouring countries are higher.
The hopelessness was expressed by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Heineken Lokpobiri, at the just concluded Energy and Labour Summit 2024 organised by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria in Abuja.
“Nigeria plays a very critical role in the energy security in Africa. That is why whatever PMS we import into Nigeria finds its way to the whole of West Africa. That is why smuggling cannot stop. If NNPC Imports PMS and sells to marketers at perhaps N600 or below, there’s no way that smuggling can stop.
“When smugglers are taking the products outside the country, even if you put all the policemen on the road, they are Nigerians; you and I know the answer. If you put all the customs men on the road, they are Nigerians, you and I know what the problem is, and that is why I’m saying that for Africa to attain energy security, Nigeria has to play a very strategic role,” Lokpobiri said.
