The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has stated that it is prepared to intervene in order to ensure that fuel is readily available in Nigeria.
The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, made the announcement today at the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC).
He noted that the apex bank would meet with the NNPC to work out necessary steps to address the petroleum product supply problems
What the CBN governor is saying about fuel scarcity
The Russian-Ukraine issue, according to Emefiele, has eroded the benefits in economic development that were recorded as a result of the easing of limitations.
- He attributed the country’s high energy prices to the Russian-Ukraine conflict. The MPC, according to Emefiele, has underlined that high oil costs have exacerbated Nigeria’s inflation.
- He also stated that the country’s inflationary strain has been exacerbated by poor electricity supply.
- The Governor mentioned that fuel station queues have driven oil markets to raise prices due to fear of not being able to acquire more oil.
- “Oil marketers are pricing current items based on their expected price.
- “The Minister of Finance and NNPC are meeting to ensure appropriate petrol goods are made available, so they can be imported and all fuel stations would have these items,” the governor stated.
- He went on to say that the apex bank would also work with the NNPC “to see if there is some kind of intervention that can make it easier for them to bring in these products, in order to stop the supply deficit.”
The governor was convinced that if supply storage were addressed, arbitrary price increases would be reduced, resulting in price moderation in other products affected by energy inflation. The governor also expressed concern about how the frequent blackout in electricity could exacerbate the burden on fuel goods.