Russia-Ukraine War: Road Transport Owners Decry Rising Cost Of Diesel

The National Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO) has decried the rising price of Automotive Gas Oil (Diesel) in the country as ongoing war between Russia and Ukraine continues to take its toll on Nigeria.

Speaking at the annual general meeting of the association held at Zuma Resort on Thursday, the national president of the association, Yusuf Lawan  Othman, said that the price of Diesel was becoming increasingly unbearable for his members.

With the price of crude oil at $121.3 per barrel, Nigeria with its four refineries with installed refinery capacity of 445,000 barrels of crude oil per day in bad shape, it relies heavily on imported Premium Motor Spirit,  (PMS) Automotive Gas Oil  (Diesel) and Aviation fuel to run its economy.

While he commended the federal government for increasing the freight rate granted transporters, Othman expressed regret that the price of Diesel has compounded the cost of operations for his members.

‘‘As at today, the price of diesel is impacting negatively on our business, not only our business but almost all activities in Nigeria because as at today, fuel is imported into the country. And naturally it’s usually at the international price and everybody knows that  that the international price is affected by the current war in Ukraine and Russia. So of course, because we import it, it’s really very costly,” he said.

Executive Secretary of Major Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMMAN6), Clement Isong, who made a virtual presentation, said ongoing war in Eastern Europe has complicated the volatility in the oil industry in Nigeria as he recalled that marketers are yet to come out of the unpleasant development of contaminated fuel coupled with  high foreign exchange rate.

Isong, who sympathized with members of NARTO over what he called unstable business environment said the federal government must look into the high  cost of diesel. His counterpart, National President of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria IPMAN Alhaji Debo Ahmed spoke in similar vein as he said the cost of diesel has become exorbitant.

For his part, the Executive Secretary of Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority NMDPRA, Farouk Ahmed, said his agency was willing to partner with NARTO to ensure success of the Petroleum Industry Act.