The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, has said when Dangote Refinery kicks off next year, it may not significantly reduce the price of petrol because the refinery will be selling at the international price.The minister said this onShe said the only thing Nigeria would not need to pay is shipping cost.
“But we will still have landing cost; labour cost and the marketers will still have to put a margin. These refineries being those that are supposed to have come to operate can now come in because they are assured that when they produce, they can sell at market rate and recover their investments and make some reasonable profits.”She said the deregulation of the sector which led to the increase in petrol price was good for the economy as it would encourage investments in refineries.
Also speaking, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Timipre Sylva, said the pump price of petrol would not drop significantly even if Nigeria is refining crude oil locally.