The average retail price of Automotive Gas Oil, also known as Diesel paid by consumers increased from N828.82 per litre in January 2023 to N1153.01 per litre in January 2024. This is an increase of 39.11 percent on a year-on-year basis.
The high cost of diesel and the epileptic power supply have been the chief contributors to the high cost of goods in the market as manufacturers battle to recover their costs.
The National Bureau of Statistics ( NBS) which released this report also informed that in the first half of 2023, Nigeria imported 2.83 billion litres of the product, indicating an increase of 49.72 percent when compared to 1.89 billion litres in the same period of 2022.
The NBS report also shows that the nation imported 11.94 billion litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) in the first half of 2023 relative to 11.56 billion litres in the corresponding period of 2022, showing an increase of 3.29 percent.
The report said during the period, 55.48 million litres of diesel were locally produced, higher, relative to 50.19 million litres reported in the corresponding period of 2022, showing a growth rate of 10.54 percent.
It said during the same period, 26.07 million litres of Household Kerosene (HHK) were locally produced compared to 22.33 million litres in the first half of 2022, indicating a growth rate of 16.79 percent over the period.
Stakeholders believe that with the commencement of production by the Dangote Petroleum Refinery Nigeria will import less of these products with a corresponding drop in price