As the price of diesel continues to rise by the day, operators and experts in the oil and gas industry have said that without local refining of petroleum products, the price of diesel and other petroleum byproducts will continue on the upward trajectory.
They also added that the exchange rate of the naira against the dollars is not making things easier.
During the height of the fuel crisis in the country, many had thought the high price of diesel was due to high cost of petrol.
But checks by Blueprint has shown that several other factors have conspired to move the price of the product to the rooftop.
At the two filling stations visited along Nyanya-Karshi road, the products sell at N625 per litre, even though the attendant, who simply identified himself as Enejo, told Blueprint reporter that they had exhausted their product.
“The last one we sold was N625 per litre.”
When pressed on why the price was so high, he said; “the manager told me that getting the product was becoming very difficult for them. According to him, they had to pay extra to be able to get the product.
A motorist in Jikwoyi, a suburb of the federal capital territory, told this reporter that the high price of diesel has been a source of concern to him.
“I have an ice block making machine and for over one month, I have been spending after the amount budgeted for diesel. What we used to buy for N350 suddenly moved to over N500. And you know what that means to my profit.
“If the power supply was stable, who would have been complaining?
TradeBriefs International in a report noted that global supply chain disruptions was affecting supply of goods and services.
According to the report, with global supply strain worsening added to the Russia-Ukraine war and the China COVID -19 lockdown, meeting global demand is becoming an herculean task.
Even global lender, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) also warned that soaring shipping costs have raised prices globally.
According to the Bretton Wood Institute, research has shown that the inflationary impact of high freight costs will continue to shoot up price for the rest of 2022.
