The cost of petrol, imported into Nigeria from January to September 2021, increased by 55.56 per cent to ₦2.52 trillion as against the ₦1.62 trillion spent 9 months in 2020.
Petrol’s ₦2.52 trillion import bill for the first nine months of this year is 47.37 per cent and 25.37 per cent higher than the amount country spent on Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) imports in the whole of 2019 and 2020 respectively, data obtained from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) show.
The hike in Nigeria’s petrol import bill comes amid growing concerns over the shortage of foreign exchange in the country.
Nigeria relies wholly on imports to meet its fuel needs as its refineries have remained in a state of disrepair for many years despite several reported repairs.
The nation spent ₦2.01 trillion on petrol imports in 2020, compared to ₦1.71 trillion in 2019.
Petrol imports consumed ₦1.05 trillion in the third quarter of 2021, up from ₦782.46 billion in Q2 and ₦687.74 billion in Q1, according to the NBS data.
The data also showed that petrol topped the list of products imported into the country in Q3, accounting for 12.52 per cent of the total amount spent on imported products, up from 11.26 per cent in 2019.
Petrol imports gobbled up ₦1.05 trillion in the third quarter of 2021, up from ₦782.46 billion in Q2 and ₦687.74 billion in Q1, according to the NBS data.
The data also showed that petrol topped the list of products imported into the country in Q3, accounting for 12.52 per cent of the total amount spent on imported products, up from 11.26 per cent in the previous quarter.
