*Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), restates the Nigerian Government’s commitment to protecting energy consumers from profiteering, charging oil marketers to reflect the considerable decline in global crude prices in the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit, also called petrol, in the domestic market
Gbenga Kayode | ConsumerConnect
The Nigerian Government directed petroleum marketers to reflect the recent considerable decline in global crude prices in the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), otherwise known as petrol.
ConsumerConnect reports the government’s directive is sequel to latest consumers and stakeholders’ criticism of alleged profiteering action by marketers in respect of the obvious drop in crude prices in the international oil market.
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Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, Honourable Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), emphasised this much Monday, June 29, 2026, in Abuja, FCT, while speaking at the 2026 General Counsel and Legal Advisers’ Forum.
The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) organised the forum, where Senator Lokpobiri also restated that fuel pricing remains subject to market forces under the deregulated downstream petroleum sector in the West African country.
Besides, crude prices, Monday, June 29, stood at $73.12 from the peak of $120 per barrel April this year due to a recent ceasefire accord between the United States (US) and Iran, and subsequent reopening of the critical and strategic Strait of Hormuz, where 20 percent of total oil supplies pass though, according to reports.
Over the last weekend, the Brent Crude dropped to $71.99, the lowest since the Iran war started, but inches up again to $72.39 per barrel as of morning Tuesday, June 30.
The Minister said the easing of geopolitical tensions, especially between the United States cum Israel and Iran had led to expectations of lower international crude oil prices.
According to him, this expectation ordinarily, should translate into a considerable reduction in prices of PMS, and other petroleum products in the domestic market.
Lokpobiri said: “Following the de-escalation of tensions between Iran and the United States, we expected to see commensurate downward adjustment in the prices of PMS and other petroleum products.
“However, that has not yet happened.”
Expressing optimism that market dynamics in the downstream petroleum sector would eventually bring prices into equilibrium, the Minister however, stressed that industry regulators must ensure deregulation is not exploited to the detriment of Nigerian consumers.
He further stated: “While we believe that market forces will eventually restore equilibrium, the regulator also has a statutory responsibility to ensure that deregulation does not become an avenue for profiteering.
“This must be done in line with the extant provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).”
Local oil refining process and petrol price
As regards the earlier increase in crude prices, local oil refiners and marketers had raised pump prices quickly across the country, with petrol price climbing to between N1,350 to N1,500.
Diesel was also selling at N2,000 as hostilities intensified in the gulf between April and May this year.
Though fuel is still being sold at an average of N1,200 while some local refiners fixed between N1,025 and N1,075 as their gantry prices despite the recent reduction of the prices by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and the Dangote Petroleum Refinery respectively.
Oil marketers also had maintained that the ongoing drop in the crude oil prices would not translate into express reduction in prices of product on the ground.
They have argued that they need to exhaust old supplies procured when prices were high in the economy, according to report.
They said it will take a minimum of six months before Nigerians could feel the impact of the reduced crude oil prices on local cost of the product.
PIA 2021, regulatory price fixing and NMDPRA’s new responsibilities
Emphasising the rationale why the government can longer fix fuel prices, Lokpobiri explained that the Federal Government could no longer do so because of the deregulation of the downstream petroleum sector under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021.
He clarified that fuel prices are now determined by market forces, making competition, supply and demand the primary factors influencing pump prices in the economy.
The Minster, nonetheless, said the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has a statutory responsibility to monitor operators, and ensure that energy consumers are protected from unfair pricing practices in the marketplace.
The country’s deregulation policy has already delivered significant gains for the petroleum sector, including improved product availability and renewed investment in domestic refining, stated he.
Aside from this, Lokpobiri noted that the policy created the enabling environment for the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals to commence operations while encouraging the development of other refinery projects across Nigeria.
In regard to product availability, he opined that the era of persistent fuel shortages has largely ended.
According to him, Nigerian energy consumers have enjoyed relatively stable product availability since 2023 despite disruptions in the international oil market caused by geopolitical tensions, including the Russian war on Ukraine, as well as the US-Israel war against Iran.
Senator Lokpobiri added: “It also ensured that artificial scarcity has become a thing of the past.
“You can attest to the fact that since 2023 there has been availability of product in the country even with the recent challenges posed by the US-Iran conflict.”
Industry stakeholders’ interventions in addressing fuel hikes
Earlier, in protecting energy consumers’ interest, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) Sunday, June 28, had challenged oil to justify the continued increments in oil prices in the Nigerian economy.
The Commission, in a statement, also threatened sanctions against fuel marketers unduly profiteering from the situation amid the downward movement of the prices of crude oil in the global market.
Underlining the pressing need for oil marketers to reduce petrol price, Mr. Tunji Bello, Executive Vice-Chairman/Chief Executive Officer (EVC/CEO) of FCCPC, stated that a recent review of PMS gantry prices by refiners, depot operators and retail outlets indicated that price cuts that were not commensurate with the obvious decline in international crude prices.
He asserted that oil market liberalisation does not diminish businesses’ obligations to compete fairly or consumers’ right to fair treatment in the country.
Bello further stated: “Where credible evidence indicates conduct that undermines competition, exploits consumers or otherwise contravenes the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Act, the Commission will investigate and take appropriate enforcement action.”
On compliance, improved investor confidence in oil sector
Speaking at the forum also, Chief Executive of the NMDPRA, represented by Rabiu Abdullahi Umar, Executive Director, Distribution Systems, Storage and Retailing Infrastructure at The Authority, said implementation of the Petroleum Industry Act had entered a new phase.
The CEO of NMDPRA noted the focus is fast shifting from legislation to practical implementation.
He said regulators, legal practitioners and corporate advisers all have important roles to play in ensuring compliance with the law and promoting investor confidence in Nigeria’s petroleum industry.
He also stated: “When the Authority established the General Counsel and Legal Advisers Forum, it did so in recognition of a simple reality that effective regulation cannot be achieved through regulations alone.
“The most carefully drafted law, the most comprehensive regulation, and the most robust compliance framework ultimately depend on people for their implementation.”
In his remarks at the forum, Dr. Joseph Tolorunse, Secretary and Legal Adviser to The Authority, said regulatory certainty remained critical to attracting investment and sustaining growth in the petroleum sector of the Nigerian economy.