12.5kg Cooking Gas To Hit N18,000 By December —NALPGM

President of the Nigerian Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers (NALPGM), Oladapo Olatunbosun has warned that the price of 12.5kg of cooking gas could go as high as N18,000 if the present scarcity persists. According to Olatunbosun, scarcity of the product is biting hard in Lagos and some other states in the country, noting that the scarcity has pushed up the price from the previous N900 per kilogram to as high as N1,400 in Lagos. He stated further that there is no justification for the current increase in refill prices. He said that stakeholders along the value chain were using the foreign exchange rate somersault as a reason to increase LPG prices, adding that 12.5kg refill prices could reach N18,000 by December 2023. “There is a ridiculous hike in gas prices going on right now, and I am afraid that if the federal government does not step in to checkmate the activities of these terminal owners, prices could reach as high as N18 million per metric ton by December. This means that a 12.5kg could go as high as N18,000″. The cost of LPG is tied to the exchange rate between the Naira and the Dollar. As the Naira weakens against the Dollar, it directly impacts the price of LPG. In just a year, the Naira weakened considerably against the Dollar, escalating from N565 to N1040 in October 2023. These shifts affect the price of LPG. Nigeria’s LPG market is supplied by both local production and imports. Local production covers a significant share, and imports bridge the supply gap. Nigeria’s Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) contributes about 40 per cent of LPG demand through domestic production. The remaining 60 per cent is imported. The price of a 12.5kg cylinder of cooking gas surged by 26 percent in two weeks to N15,000 from N11,850 owing to high global crude oil and gas prices and Nigeria’s forex crises. This recent surge will further squeeze cash-strapped consumers, erode their purchasing ability and amplify a cost of living crisis in Africa’s most populous nation. It will also accelerate October inflation when the figures are released. The World Bank, in its latest Nigeria Development Update report for June 2023, said the loss of purchasing power from high inflation has increased poverty in the short term, pushing an estimated four million Nigerians into poverty between January – May 2023. The global bank estimates based on the NBS data show that 89.8 million Nigerians fell below the poverty line at the start of 2023, with an additional four million making it 93.8 million in May of 2023.

Nigeria’s eCommerce Revenue To Hit $6.710m By December

Revenue in Nigeria’s eCommerce market is projected to reach $6,710.00 million by December 2023, a new report by Statista has said. In its eCommerce in Nigeria report, the data company stated that revenue is expected to show an annual growth rate (CAGR 2023-2027) of 10.79 per cent, resulting in a projected market volume of $10,110.00 million by 2027. With a projected market volume of $1.319 billion in 2023, the report noted that most revenue will be generated in China. “In the eCommerce market, the number of users is expected to amount to 143.9m users by 2027. “User penetration will be 45.3% in 2023 and is expected to hit 58.6% by 2027. “The average revenue per user (ARPU) is expected to amount to $66.23, the report said. 

Port Harcourt refinery to resume operations by December -FG

*We’re committed to ending fuel importation, says Minister The Federal Government has reiterated its commitment to ending petroleum product importation soon, as efforts are being redoubled to restore the nation’s local refining capacity. According to a statement on hits X handle, Chief Corporate Communications Officer NNPC Ltd. Garba Deen Muhammad, said the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, made this known during an inspection tour of the rehabilitation work progress at the Port Harcourt Refining Company (PHRC) Ltd. plant, in Port Harcourt on Friday. The Minister, who was in the company of his counterpart, the Minister of State for Petroleum (Gas), Hon. Ekperikpe Ekpo; Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Ambassador Gabriel T. Aduda, and the Group CEO, NNPC Ltd., Mr. Mele Kyari, said considering the level of progress recorded in the PHRC rehabilitation project, the plant will come back on stream by December this year. “Our objective in coming here today is to ensure that in the next few years, Nigeria stops fuel importation. From what we have seen here today, Port Harcourt Refinery will come on board by the end of the year, Warri will come on stream by the end of the first quarter of next year, and Kaduna will also come on board towards the end of next year. If you add that to the Dangote Refinery, we will be able to stop fuel importation, and Nigerians will enjoy the full benefits of deregulation,” the Minister assured. The Minister also said he was satisfied with the ongoing rehabilitation work at the Port Harcourt refinery, noting that once all the refineries are back on stream, Nigerians will enjoy a better supply of petroleum products, and foreign exchange will be domesticated, leading to an improved economy. Earlier in his remarks, the Group CEO, NNPC Ltd., Mr. Mele Kyari, said bringing back the refineries to their optimal levels is a national aspiration, and the Company remains focused on delivering that. “We are aware of our nation’s challenges in terms of fuel supply. But we are not here to give excuses. We are focused on delivering this rehabilitation project, our two other refineries, and all other investments towards revamping the nation’s refining capacity. We are hopeful that in 2024, this country will be a net exporter of petroleum products,” Kyari stated. Also speaking, the Minister of State for Petroleum (Gas), Hon. Ekperikpe Ekpo said: “We are here to go into the field. Yesterday was the era of subsidies. Today, we don’t have subsidies. Today, people are in a desperate situation to heave a sigh of relief; and see how to live. You all know that petrol is very vital to our economy. All hands must be on deck to ensure that the refineries are working,” he stated. During the visit, the two Ministers also participated in the Refineries’ Rehabilitation Steering Committee meeting and held a meeting with the refinery’s Engineering, Procurement & Construction (EPC) Contractors.

Transcorp’s generating capacity to hit 1200MW by December

Transcorp Group has said it hopes to raise Nigeria’s power capacity by 300MW by the end of 2023.  Speaking on AriseTV, Group Chief Executive Officer of Transcorp Group, Owen Omogiafo, said that resounding the gas challenge will enable the company to achieve its milestone.  According to the Transcorp GCEO, despite the gas and transmission challenges, the company still witnessed an impressive improvement in its power business in the first six months of this year (2023). “Transcorp has an installed generation capacity of nearly 2000MW, and in the first half of the year, we focused greatly on improving our mechanical available capacity and we took our capacity to about 900MW.  “There were still some challenges with gas and transmission, but notwithstanding that, we saw a great improvement in our power business. Going by the strategy we are working with now, by year end, we will have about 1,200MW of available capacity.” On the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) acquisition, Omogiafo explained that Transcorp as part of a consortium that acquired a 60 per cent stake in AEDC was driven by the need to drive Nigeria’s economic recovery as no industry or sector can operate without power.  Experts have opined that lack of a stable power supply continues to be a drawback to the country’s development.  Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) has said that its members spent the sum of N144.5 billion on alternative power sources in 2022.  She noted that the power sector is critical if the country’s real sector is economic growth.