FG gas intervention falters as cooking gas prices stay above N1,300/kg
The Federal Government’s emergency intervention to halt Nigeria’s cooking gas crisis has failed to deliver the much-needed price relief for millions of households, with retail prices remaining above N1,300 per kilogramme two weeks after authorities stepped into the market.
Despite improved product availability and calmer supply conditions following an emergency stakeholders’ meeting convened by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo, industry operators say consumers are yet to benefit from lower prices.
Cooking gas, which sold for less than N1,000 per kilogramme before the market crisis in May, is still being retailed at between N1,300 and N1,650 across many parts of the country, even after peaking at about N2,500 during the shortage.
The National President of the Nigerian Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers (NALPGAM), Edu Inyang, admitted that while the government’s intervention restored supply stability and prevented a deeper crisis, it had failed to make cooking gas affordable.
According to him, the Abuja emergency meeting succeeded in calming panic buying, improving communication between government and operators and increasing national LPG supply, but Nigerians are yet to experience meaningful price reductions.
“The meeting stabilised the market without yet making cooking gas affordable,” Inyang said.
He explained that national LPG supply sufficiency improved from about 11 days to 22 days, while average daily supply rose from roughly 4,262 metric tonnes in May to more than 5,000 metric tonnes in June.
However, he noted that improved supply alone has not translated into cheaper cooking gas because of high international LPG prices, rising foreign exchange costs, expensive transportation, inadequate domestic production and persistent logistics bottlenecks.
Inyang warned that millions of households continue to ration cooking gas consumption or revert to firewood and charcoal because prices remain beyond their reach, undermining the Federal Government’s Decade of Gas agenda.
He described the government’s intervention as only a first step, stressing that the structural problems driving high LPG prices remain unresolved.
According to him, unless authorities address domestic production shortfalls, infrastructure deficits, logistics constraints, foreign exchange exposure and pricing distortions, Nigerians will continue to pay elevated prices despite improved market supply.
He also warned that the market could slide back into another round of volatility if commitments made during the Abuja meeting are not fully implemented or if domestic LPG production fails to increase.
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