NNPC To Spend N3trn On Petrol Subsidy This Year–Finance Minister

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd is to spend the sum of N3trn to subsidise the price of Premium Motor Spirit in the 2022 fiscal period.

The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed revealed this on Wednesday in Abuja at the end of the weekly Federal Executive Council meeting.

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The meeting was presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari at the Council Chambers, Presidential Villa, Abuja.

Between January and November last year, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd subsidized the price of Premium Motor Spirits for Nigerians with the sum of N1.2trn.

But the minister said that the FEC considered the request to make additional funding provision to enable the government to meet incremental fuel subsidy payment in the 2022 budget.

She explained that only N443bn is currently provided in the 2022 budget to accommodate subsidy from January to June.

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She said, “What this means is that we have to make incremental provision of N2.557trn to be able to meet subsidy requirement which is averaging about N270bn per month.”

She said the request was considered by council which directed the ministry to approach the National Assembly for an amendment to the fiscal framework as well as the budget.

The Nigeria Labour Congress had threatened to embark on industrial action if the government went ahead to implement an increase in the price of Premium Motor Spirit.

The Congress in a petition to the Governors of the 36 states had called on the federal government to announce the withdrawal of its plans to increase the pump price of petrol.

Following the threat, the federal government suspended the implementation period for fuel subsidy removal to forestall supply disruptions and guide market readiness preparatory to migration to the deregulated pricing regime.

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President Muhammadu Buhari following consultations with stakeholders, had agreed to an extension of the statutory period for the implementation of the removal of subsidy on PMS in line with existing laws.

The President’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, had when he featured on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily programme monitored by The WHISTLER said that the Federal Government will continue to borrow to raise the needed amount to finance the fuel subsidy regime.

He argued that with the huge amount needed to subsidize the price of Premium Motor Spirit, the country may be left with no other choice than to continue borrowing to shoulder its fiscal burden.

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