'FG Has Suspended Paying Subsidy on Petrol'

Ibe Kachikwu , the Minister of State for petroleum, revealed yesterday, December 27, owing to the current low price of crude oil in the ...

Ibe Kachikwu, the Minister of State for petroleum, revealed yesterday, December 27, owing to the current low price of crude oil in the international market. The minister said the suspension would continue as long as the price remain low.

Kachikwu who disclosed this to reporters on Sunday in Kaduna, claimed that if the price of crude oil increases, the situation will be managed by what he called a "price modulation" in the oil sector.

However, the Minister of State for petroleum said price modulation is not a total removal of subsidy on petrol.

Kacikwu also revealed that there would be a periodic review of the Petroleum Pricing Template and a managed pricing system. He said that the government is more interested in the price modulation that would be introduced at the beginning of 2016, instead of the outright removal of subsidy.

After his inspection of the Kaduna and Port Hacourt refineries, Kachikwu commented that their combined daily production is expected to reach 10 million litres in January 2016. He also promised the revamping of other refineries in the country.