Gas marketers advocates end to N1.7trn kerosene subsidy racket

Stakeholders in Nigeria’s Liquefied Petroleum sector, the Nigeria Liquefied Petroleum Gas Association (NLPGA), have tasked the Federal Government to terminate the kerosene subsidy racket, which has gulped over N1.7 trillion in six years.

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), which is the major importer of kerosene, according to the seventh House of Representatives, paid subsidy on kerosene to itself between 2009 and 2014, amounting to N1.7 trillion.

The government also budgeted over N45 billion to subsidise the product in the 2015 budget alone.

Dayo Adesina, president, NLPGA, said on the sideline of the fifth annual gas conference organised by the NLPGA in Lagos, that the government had a better alternative in the Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), also known as cooking gas, to stop this subsidy.

Re-affirming the continued willingness of his group to support the Federal Government’s actions to encourage LPG usage nationwide, he cautioned on spending on subsidy on products that has cheaper, cleaner and safer alternatives.

Adesina said the group would continue to advocate for a boost in investments for LPG beyond the present investments figure.

Other stakeholders at the conference tagged: “LPG, the Future is now,” also bemoaned Nigeria’s per capita LPG consumption for being the lowest in sub-Saharan Africa.

They expressed dissatisfaction with under-utilisation of the product, advocating boost to the about multi-billion dollars LPG investments in the country.

“The per capita consumption of LPG, also known as cooking gas, in Nigeria is the lowest in sub-Saharan Africa,” Nuhu Yakubu, NLPGA deputy president, said.

A view that was corroborated by LPG experts like Baylon Duru, Felix Ekundayo and Auwalu Ilu.

“Nigeria is the second largest producer of LPG in Africa and the sixth largest producer in the world. We produce over 4 million tons of LPG per annum and have the capacity to consume as much,” Ekundayo said.

“In addition, we flare an additional 1-2 million tons of LPG inland. Ironically, Nigeria also has the lowest per capita consumption of LPG in sub-Saharan Africa at 0.8kg per annum. Consumption in 2014 was 350, 000 tons,” Duru said.

Earlier, Kirk Smith, a professor at University of California, Berkley,  said ailments related to dirty fuel like kerosene and firewood would kill more Nigerians if nothing was done to encourage cleaner fuel like alternative fuel for cooking, powering machines, fuelling vehicles, among others.

Delivering a paper entitled: “LPG and the health of the World’s Poor,” Smith said: “When firewood is used it produces 400 cigarettes per hour.”