Cooking Gas Price Rises 34.6% to N17,500 as Supply Disruptions Bite

The cost of refilling a 12.5kg cylinder of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), commonly known as cooking gas, has surged by 34.6 percent week-on-week, rising to N17,500 from N12,750 the previous week.

Market checks also revealed that 1kg of LPG now sells between N1,350 and N1,500, depending on location.

Speaking to Vanguard by phone, Mr. Olatunbosun Oladapo, National President of the Nigerian Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers (NALPGAM), attributed the sharp increase to the recent industrial action by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), which disrupted the supply chain, particularly in the South-West.

“Gas is largely a matter of demand and supply. Once supply is limited, demand rises, and prices go up,” Oladapo explained.

He disclosed that during the strike, most gas plants were forced to shut down. He also lamented that Dangote, the major supplier known for stable availability and affordable prices, has yet to release loading invoices to many marketers for over three weeks, forcing them to source products from competitors at higher rates.

“Other competitors took advantage of the situation and increased their prices. No marketer wants to leave his plant empty, so they were left with no option but to buy at inflated prices,” he said.

Oladapo appealed to Dangote to resume trucking out products to more marketers, expressing optimism that prices would stabilize once supply improves.