Business
High Petrol Price: Regulators Shut Seven Defaulting Depots, To Revoke Licences
The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has shut seven defaulting depots and vowed to revoke the licences of petrol marketers selling above the controlled prices, and those hoarding the product in their depots.
Chief Executive officer of the NMDPRA, Mr. Farouk Ahmed, made this vow while speaking in Abuja, weekend.
He explained that in the last few days several depots had been shut down for selling above the regulated prices.
According to Ahmed, the nation still had at least 30-day sufficiency, noting that the global crisis caused by the Russian and Ukrainian war in addition to the fluctuation in the value of the naira had affected the even distribution of petroleum products, particularly from the waterways to the depots through truck-ins to the retail stations.
He stated that several meetings had been held with petrol marketing companies, independent marketers, transporters, the suppliers – Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) – and other interested parties to see how the distribution bottlenecks could be addressed.
“Now, the market is not deregulated. So, we are still in a regulated environment as far as petrol is concerned,” he stated.
Ahmed continued that President Muhammadu Buhari had approved an additional N10 for transporters to cover the transportation costs as a result of the high costs of diesel, which, he said, is the main source of transporting other products within the country.
He noted further that one of the constraints within the distribution system had been the increase in the bunkers’ freight rate from between $16,000 to $19,000 per day to about $35,000 to $40,000 per day within Lagos and even more to Calabar.
“We sat down with the marketing companies and agreed to give them some palliatives through the NNPC, as well as through our regulatory control areas. But the market has continued to increase the cost of ex-depot prices.
outlet owner, he will say this is how much he bought it from the depot owner. But NNPC Limited is the sole importer. And they sell these products to the marketing companies within acceptable import parity pricing benchmarks.
“So, even with the additional cost of transportation, by trucking or by sea, the acceleration or the increase in the ex-depot price was completely outrageous,” Ahmed explained.
He noted that as a responsible regulator, the organisation was concerned about the yearnings and sufferings of innocent Nigerians who have no voices and had therefore decided to take action, not necessarily to destabilise the market but to strengthen it.
“We had intelligence from other relevant law enforcement agents, in addition to the intelligence information we had within our own system, so we corroborated all the information that we gathered.
“We had to take action, and the first action we took a couple of days ago was to shut down some of the depots where they have products.
“A lot of them have breached that trust or regulatory requirement, but we’ll have to start from somewhere. So we shut down about seven depots in Lagos and other parts. We have shut down Aldova.
“Aldova is under maintenance; so, we shut down where they had their products and they were selling beyond the controlled price and Aldova is a major marketing company. You know, they are getting their products directly from NNPC.
“And they’re also getting it with some level of comfort because it’s not like cash and carry, so they had no reason to increase their price beyond reason. Then, of course, Rainoil in Lagos and all their facilities,” he said.
In Warri, Oghara, Port Harcourt and Calabar, Ahmed added that some depots had also been closed for breaching the rules.
“The next level is the continuation of what we are doing. We have got to a level where marketers understand their responsibility to the consumers. What do you do next? We can revoke any licence.
“We don’t need to shut their depots. We don’t need to shut down their facility or retail outlet. We just have the mandate as a regulator to withdraw or revoke their licence.
“And once we revoke your licence, we notify all the relevant stakeholders that deal with you in the business to also know that if you do not have a licence, if they deal with you, they’re also breaching the regulation and they’re breaching the process and that’s exactly what we are going to do because we cannot continue like this. Nigerians have suffered,” he added.
According to him, the board of directors of NMDPRA had met and agreed and had given the go-ahead to shut down any defaulting facilities.
“We have enough products in the country. As of last night, we had about 30 days sufficiency and I will tell you that about 10 days of that sufficiency is on land and there has been even distribution by trucking,” he added.
The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), in partnership with a firm, Sweetcrude Ltd., has announced detailed selection criteria for the inaugural “Champions of Nigerian Content Awards”, designed to honor outstanding contributions to local content development in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector.
The Tide learnt that the event, scheduled to hold 21st May, 2025, at the NCDMB’S content tower headquarters in Yenagoa, capital of Bayelsa State, will recognize individuals and organizations that have demonstrated exceptional commitment to advancing Nigerian Content in 2024.
The Tide further gathered that the ceremony will coincide with the Nigerian Oil and Gas Opportunity Fair (NOGOF), which promises to spotlighting industry excellence and contributions to national economic transformation.
A statement by the Board’s Directorate of Corporate Communications and Zonal Coordination says the event has 12 Award Categories, which include, “Nigerian Content Icon of the Year”, “Nigerian Content Lifetime Achievement Award”, “Nigerian Content International Upstream Operator of the year”, and the “Nigerian Content Independent Upstream Operator of the year”.
Others are, “Nigerian Content Midstream Operator of the year”, “Nigerian Content Downstream Operator of the year”, “Nigerian Content International Service Company of the year”, Nigerian Content Indigenous Service Company of the year”, and the “Nigerian Content Innovator of the year”.
Also included are, “Nigerian Content Financial Services Provider of the year”, “Nigerian Content Media Organization of the year”, and “Women in Leadership Award for Promoting Gender Equality and Empowerment”.
According to the NCDMB, the criteria for oil and gas operators will include key and empirical benchmarks such as Production output for crude oil and gas volumes, Compliance with Nigerian Content Plans (NCPs) and Nigerian Content Compliance Certificates (NCCCs).
Other criteria are adherence to NOGICD Act reporting requirements, such as submission of Nigerian Content Performance Reports and Employment & Training Plans.
The Board’s statement added that similar criteria will apply to financial institutions, media organizations, and individuals, ensuring a transparent and merit-based selection process.
“Winners for the Nigerian Content Icon of the Year, Innovator of the Year, and Women in Leadership Award will also be selected based on measurable performance indicators.
“The Advisory Committee of Industry Titans will Oversee the process to uphold the prestige of awards. The Committee consist of distinguished experts set up to oversee nominations and validate winners”, the NCDMB said.
Members of the committee, according to the Board, include: Pioneer Executive Secretary of the NCDMB, Dr. Ernest Nwapa; Secretary-General, African Petroleum Producers Organization, Dr. Omar Farouk; and former Zonal Operations Controller, DPR, Mr. Woke Akinyosoye.
The Statement quoted the Executive Secretary, NCDMB, Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe, as emphasizing that the awards aim to becoming the oil and gas sector’s equivalent of the Oscars, celebrating genuine impact rather than mere participation.
“This recognition is reserved for those who have gone beyond compliance to drive tangible growth in Nigerian Content.
“With a focus on credibility, compliance, and measurable impact, the Champions of Nigerian Content Awards is poised to set a new standard for excellence in Nigeria’s energy sector”, the NCDMB Executive Scribe said.
By: Ariwera Ibibo-Howells, Yenagoa
Nigeria’s apex Banking institution, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), has declared that Federal Government’s debt servicing increased to N696billion in January 2025.
The CBN’s recently published Economic Report revealed a precarious fiscal position, which worsened in January 2025 as debt servicing obligations exceeded total retained revenue by a wide margin.
According to the report, the Federal Government’s debt servicing obligations for the month stood at N696.27bn, while total retained revenue amounted to only N483.47bn, indicating that debt service alone consumed about 144 per cent of all government earnings.
This development highlights the growing debt burden and dwindling fiscal space facing Africa’s largest economy.
According to the report, despite slight improvements in some revenue categories, the retained earnings were grossly inadequate to cover obligatory debt repayments, exposing the government’s continued reliance on borrowing to meet basic obligations.
The report further revealed that retained revenue in January 2025 only recorded a marginal 0.89 per cent increase when compared with the N479.21bn generated in the corresponding month of 2024.
”FGN retained revenue declined in the review period, owing largely to lower receipts from Federal Government Independent Revenue and FGN’s share of exchange gain.
“At N0.48tn, provisional FGN retained revenue was 69.19 and 70.40 per cent below the levels recorded in the preceding period and monthly target, respectively”, it revealed.
While this points to stagnation rather than growth, the marginal rise was wiped out by the overwhelming debt service obligations.
The retained revenue components showed that the Federation Account contributed N167.69bn, while the VAT Pool Account delivered N90.73bn.
By: Corlins Walter
The Federal Government has announced plans to commence the payment of the outstanding N35,000 wage award arrears owed workers in the Federal Civil Service.
A statement issued by the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (AGF), which was signed by the Director of Press and Public Relations, Bawa Mokwa, said the outstanding arrears will be paid in instalments, with workers set to receive N35,000 per month for five months.
It clarified that the first tranche of the wage award arrears would be released immediately after the April salary payment.
“The wage award arrears was not paid with the April 2025 salary; it will come immediately after the salary is paid”, the statement read.
The Federal Government had earlier disbursed wage awards to federal workers for five months as part of efforts to cushion the impact of economic reforms. However, five months’ arrears remained unpaid.
The AGF office further reiterated the government’s commitment to fully implementing all policies and agreements relating to staff remuneration and welfare, noting that such efforts were geared towards enhancing productivity and operational efficiency across ministries, departments, and agencies.
The N35,000 wage award was introduced in 2023 as a palliative measure to support workers following the removal of the petrol subsidy and other economic adjustments.
In January this year, the Federal Government assured workers that it would clear the arrears of the N35,000 wage award, just as it also said the government had resumed the payment of the wage award.
The government also reiterated its commitment to addressing issues in the National Minimum Wage agreement reached with the Organised Labour in 2023.
The Minister of Labour and Employment, Nkeiruka Onyejeocha, had disclosed the government’s commitment towards implementing agreements with trade unions during separate meetings with the leadership of the Trade Union Congress and Congress of University Academics, in Abuja.
The Nigeria Labour Congress had criticised the Federal Government over the delay in the payment of the minimum wage for certain workers in the federal civil service.
Also, the Federal Government had earlier blamed the delay in payment on the prolonged approval of the 2025 budget.
By: Corlins Walter
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