From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
The Federal Government on Thursday disclosed that it currently subsidies cost of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) with about N120 billion ($263,248 million) monthly.
The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, made the disclosure at the fifth edition of the Special Ministerial Briefings coordinated by the Presidential Communication Team.
He said the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) absorbs the cost differential which is recorded in its financial books.
The Group Managing Director (GMD) of the NNPC, Mele Kyari, explained that while the actual cost of importation and handling charges amounts to lN234 per liter, the government is selling at N162 per liter.
He, however, said the NNPC can no longer afford to bear the cost, adding that sooner or later Nigerians would have to pay the actual cost for the commodity.
Kyari, who avoided calling the payment a subsidy, said the NNPC pays between N100-120 billion a month to keep the pump price at the current levels, insisting that market forces must be allowed to determine the pump price of petrol in the country.
Details later…