Pirates attack on LPG vessel cause of hike in price of cooking gas

The sudden rise in the price of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (Cooking Gas) has been blamed on pirates’ attack on LPG vessel coming to Lagos.Price of refilling a 5kg cooking gas cylinder had been around N1, 200 and N1, 500 for a very long time, only for the price to climb to between N2, 500 and N3, 000 in past weeks.
 
Following the untold hardship the situation has brought on consumers, there are concerns that if the situation persists, it may frustrate the Federal Government’s plans to promote massive use of cooking gas.
 
A restauranter who relies on cooking gas for her daily business, Mrs. Loretta Okechukwu, described the price increase as outrageous, considering the state of the economy.She noted: “I used to buy the 12.5kg of gas for N3, 000 and it lasts for three weeks or even up to one month. In the last three years, the price had been stable, cheaper and easier to get than kerosene.

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in its monthly LPG price watch claimed that the average price for the refilling of a five kilograms (kg) cylinder has increased by 5.48 per cent month on month and 45.59 per cent year-on-year to N2, 708.38 in February 2017 from N2, 567.56 in January 2017.

It listed states with the highest average price for the refilling of a 5kg cylinder for cooking gas to include Edo, N3, 030.00; Abia, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross River, Zamfara, Rivers and Kebbi, N3, 000; and Delta, 2,984.62.States with the lowest average price for the refilling of a 5kg cylinder for cooking gas to be Osun, N2, 393.75; Oyo, N2, 376.47; and Ondo, N2, 372.73.

Commenting on the development, President of the Nigerian LPG Association, (NLPGA), Adedayo Adeshina, attributed the rising price of cooking gas to pirate’s attack on LPG vessels on its way to Lagos.
 
While stressing that the mishap delayed discharge of LPG, Adeshina said the issue has been resolved, adding that the vessel owner has requested for more insurance from the Navy and there is already free flow of product.
 
He said consumers should expect a stable price, adding that it may take a while to establish stability once there is any disruption in activities.It would be recalled that Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, revealed that the Federal Government had introduced plans to ensure four million households get cooking gas by 2019.