Cooking gas prices across Nigeria have remained above previous levels despite an improvement in product availability following the Federal Government’s intervention in the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) market.
Industry operators say the emergency meeting convened by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo, in late June helped ease supply shortages and restore stability, but consumers are still paying significantly more for cooking gas than they did before the recent market disruption.
Retail prices currently range between about N1,300 and N1,650 per kilogramme in many parts of the country. Before the supply crisis began in May, cooking gas sold for less than N1,000 per kilogramme, although prices later climbed as high as N2,500 in some locations during the peak of the shortage.
The National President of the Nigerian Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers, Edu Inyang, said the government’s intervention successfully calmed the market and improved product availability but had not yet delivered meaningful price relief for households.
According to him, the supply disruption was driven by rising depot and import costs, logistics challenges, panic buying and speculative stockpiling, all of which contributed to the sharp increase in retail prices.
Inyang noted that one of the key achievements of the government’s intervention was the increase in available LPG supplies nationwide. He said supply coverage improved from roughly 11 days to about 22 days, while average daily product availability increased from around 4,262 metric tonnes in May to more than 5,000 metric tonnes in June.
He explained that although shortages have eased and filling plants now have better access to products, several underlying factors continue to keep prices high. These include elevated international LPG prices, foreign exchange pressures, high transportation costs, inadequate domestic production and limited market competition.
As a result, many consumers are still reducing their LPG usage or switching to alternative cooking fuels such as firewood and charcoal.
Inyang described the Abuja stakeholders’ meeting as an important first step rather than a complete solution to the challenges facing the sector. He said it restored confidence within the supply chain, strengthened communication between government and industry participants and helped prevent a more severe supply crisis.
However, he stressed that long-term affordability will depend on addressing structural issues such as expanding local LPG production, improving infrastructure, reducing logistics bottlenecks and easing the industry’s exposure to foreign exchange fluctuations.
He expressed optimism that sustained implementation of the resolutions reached at the stakeholders’ meeting could lead to improved nationwide supply, more stable depot prices and a gradual reduction in retail prices.
He added that unless these long-term challenges are resolved, cooking gas is likely to remain unaffordable for many Nigerian households despite the recent improvements in supply.
