Rising Cost of Gas Due To Low Supply, Says Kyari

By Uche Mbah

The current skyrocketing of the price of gas in the country is caused by a low supply of the commodity to depots.

This was disclosed by Mele Kyari, Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Tuesday in Abuja during an official visit to Sarki Auwalu, Director of the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR).

He, however, did not disclose where improvement in supply will come from, or the concrete steps aimed at solving the problem.

Cooking gas has effected a 15% increase in price per kilogram within the last six months with a six-kilogram cylinder now selling for three thousand Naira, and 12.5 kg 6,500 in some places.

Kyari “Today, this country is under-supplied with gas; we can tell you that we are having difficulty filling our network across the country with gas. So that means that once supply is weak, it will affect pricing.”

“Today, the supply mechanism of LPG is very weak. So, we are collaborating extensively to ensure that we can extract LPG from our gas resources so that it can be made available to the market.

“To make the price more affordable, we are working towards providing more volume of gas into the domestic market. By doing this, we make it very close to home and extend the networks. Once supply is high, it will bring down the prices.”

Kyari said the corporation is working with relevant agencies to bring down the price by expanding the network of availability that will deliver products directly to consumers. He did not go into specifics but it appears he believes the solution lies in direct piping to homes, which analysts believe will be a herculean task due to the nonavailability of planned neighborhoods in the majority of homes.

“If we do this, all cylinders will not be of any use. That is why I don’t see them used in many developed countries,” Kyari explained.

“When we can power thermal gas plants across the country and very close to the users, ultimately, homes will be run with electric cookers and utensils, and that way, you will have less need for cylinders.

“We are transiting, and we will continue to add more volume into the market so that we bring down the prices.”