Oil marketers under the aegis of Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN) have faulted airline operators’ claim of buying aviation fuel at N700 per litre.
The airline operators, under the aegis of Airline Operators of Nigeria, AON, had cited the high cost of aviation fuel of N700 per litre as a major reason for the proposed strike action scheduled to commence yesterday which was suspended following the appeals by the Federal government and other stakeholders.
However, in a swift reaction, MOMAN Executive Secretary, Mr Clement Isong faulted the N700 per litre claim saying the association is not aware of anywhere in the country where aviation fuel is sold at N700 per litre.
Responding to media enquiries on the issue, Isong said: “I am not aware that aviation fuel is sold currently anywhere at N700 per litre. There has been an intervention by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd., which is now bringing in ATK.
“It gets into the tank, all costs together, at about N500 per litre. If we use the local airport at Ikeja as a benchmark, it is sold between N540 and N550 per litre.
“Nobody with common sense will go and bring in ATK now that NNPC is bringing in and selling it cheap. NNPC is bringing in the product because it is swapping it with crude and when it swaps it with crude it uses the Central Bank of Nigeria exchange rate of N419 to a dollar.
“Meanwhile the product is deregulated. So no normal person can go and get it at that exchange rate. You cannot use N589/$ (black market rate) to bring in the product and sell at N550 per litre.”
He added that the intervention by the NNPC has discouraged marketers from importing aviation fuel because it will be a bad business decision.
“ATK as a product is handled very carefully. It is continuously filtered. It is carried by special trucks, so there are extra handling costs.
“Even with these costs, it is sold at the tarmac between N540 and N550 per litre in Lagos and by the time you carry it all over the country including transportation cost, it will be sold at about N570 or N580 at the farthest airport from Lagos. There is nowhere that aviation fuel is sold at N700 per litre,” the Executive Secretary said.
He said inquiries made by MOMAN also showed that aviation fuel was cheaper in Nigeria compared to other West African countries.
“In Ghana, aviation fuel is sold at Platt, North-Western Europe, plus premium or minus at 1.25 dollars per litre.
“In Liberia and Sierra Leone, it is selling at 5.70 dollars per gallon, which translates to 1.51 dollars per litre. So, those are your West African prices.
source: vanguardngr.com