Deregulation of the downstream oil & gas sector in Nigeria is one topic that has been on for so long, you will be forgiven for thinking it's a yearly ritual in the country.
Over the years, successive attempts by various government administrations have failed in delivering a fully deregulated downstream market that should be based on the basic economic principle of DEMAND and SUPPLY.
In March 2020, downstream oil & gas sector regulators announced the implementation of the deregulated system of the sector. This meant that prices of petroleum products will be determined by the international price & the demand & supply
Pump price dropped from N145/liter to range between 123.5/liter & 125/liter. Everyone thought the oil sector was finally getting closer to the promised land. This was not the case, sadly 😔
Gradual rises in the months that followed saw pump price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) rise to as high as N168/liter even though the international market prices dropped
This disagreement between pump price & international price caused people to wonder if deregulation of the oil & gas sector was the right thing. There were even suggestions that industry players were taking advantage to enrich themselves
Truth is, a FULLY DEREGULATED downstream oil and gas sector would create investment avenues, hence increase wealth creation, expand revenue generation avenues for the govt through direct & indirect taxation.
For a successful deregulation of the downstream sector, there needs to be a market condition that guarantees supply of products at commercial prices to customers. This market condition is only possible through the creation of a competitive market environment
Full deregulation of the downstream oil and gas sector should not be limited to the removal of government subsidies alone. The concept of deregulation as regards the downstream sector should be all encompassing & not just about removal of subsidies
A strong regulator should be brought (not to fix product prices) in to monitor & enable transparent & fair competition amongst players
&
The Nigerian Government shouldn't be charged with the responsibility of importing PMS into the country through the NNPC
CBN should provide access to Forex at the same rate for all importers. This cancels out the monopoly in the wholesale market & breeds a competitive market that can only benefit the final consumers
The Petroleum Product Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) should publish guiding prices monthly. With PPPRA as a regulator in the industry, the monthly guiding prices should follow market trends (and be made public too) to avoid exploitation at all levels.
The Nigerian oil & gas sector is like beans & would not be well enjoyed unless you have a good complement to go with it (be it plantain or bread 😋). That complement is the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB)
Nigeria is rated as one of the top producers of oil in the world & one of the top-top producers of oil in Africa. But when it comes to profitability from this same oil, the country is nowhere to be found. This may be blamed on corruption & mismanagement.
The Nigerian Oil & gas sector is (majorly) governed by the Petroleum Profit Tax (PPT) Act of 1959 & the Petroleum Act of 1969. They are outdated & archaic & should not be the law by which the oil & gas sector (which drives the Nigerian economy) operates by.
In Nigeria today, PMS pump price keeps defying the law of gravity as it continues to give credence to the saying "when prices go up in Nigeria, they never come down."
This is the fate of the Nigerian oil sector. Successive regimes, different strategies & the pump price trajectory is still an upward curve (perhaps even getting steeper). This begs the question.
The NNPC is like a big black hole, sucking in national funds & resources, leaving institutions half dead & the country worse off.
Makes you wonder "this oil gan sef, na blessing, abi na curse?"
NNPC, via the corporation’s financial account, posted a loss of N16.3 billion in 2019 . The overall Group reported a N20.2 billion loss. In 10 years, the corporation had reported a combined loss of N474 billion while that of the group stands at N1.55 trillion
@Dataphyte ran an analysis of NNPC's financial report & revealed that credit sales to subsidiaries worth N1.45 trillion remain unpaid. Furthermore, of NNPC's 22 subsidiaries, 12 owe the parent company trillions of Naira.
Or maybe it is a case of if Nigeria doesn't kill NNPC, NNPC will kill Nigeria.
Did you know that quarter of the subsidiaries’ debts could have helped Nigeria to clean up the oil spills that plagues human & marine life in Ogoni land?
{A SADDER Thread}
The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) estimates that the Ogoni cleanup will cost an initial $1 billion which (at the time of their report) amounts to N394.74 billion 🤯
The huge amount of unpaid debts by NNPC’s subsidiaries can significantly reduce the country’s rising debt profile & also form a substantial part of Nigeria’s annual budgets.
A country like Nigeria, producing oil at 2 million barrels per day (BPD) & still having nothing to show for it is down to either bad/inadequate regulatory institutions & framework or witchery.
My bet is on the former
@Dataphyte went further to analyse the financial records of the 22 subsidiaries of the @NNPCgroup & revealed that 12 of them owes @NNPCgroup trillions of Naira.