Petrol: NNPC Restricts Discount Sales, May Forgo ₦4.6bn

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) has restricted access to its ₦66-per-litre petrol discount to customers who use its mobile application, raising concerns about how easily motorists can benefit from the relief initiative.

Checks at NNPC retail outlets in Abuja on Friday showed that petrol sold for ₦1,405 per litre to customers paying directly at the pumps, while those using the company’s application paid ₦1,339 per litre.

The arrangement means motorists who do not use the app cannot automatically access the discount at the pump.

NNPC introduced the promotion on October 1 to mark Nigeria’s 66th Independence Anniversary. The company has since extended it until October 31 as part of efforts to ease the impact of rising fuel prices on households, businesses and transport operators.

However, the discount could reduce NNPC Retail’s gross revenue by an estimated ₦4.62 billion if its reported average monthly sales volume of 70 million litres qualifies for the full reduction.

At ₦1,405 per litre, sales of 70 million litres would generate about ₦98.35 billion. At the discounted price of ₦1,339, the same volume would generate approximately ₦93.73 billion.

The estimate assumes that all the petrol sold qualifies for the discount. The actual reduction would depend on the volume purchased through the application during the promotional period.

Finance Minister and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, said the discount was being funded from NNPC Retail’s profit margin rather than government funds. He described it as a commercial promotion intended to attract customers to the company’s digital platform.

Oyedele said NNPC’s relatively small share of the petrol retail market made the arrangement manageable and argued that increased sales could help offset the reduced margin per litre.

The Federal Government has also said the intervention is not a return to the former petrol subsidy regime, which ended in May 2023.

NNPC said the discount applies to its retail outlets nationwide and does not establish a uniform national pump price or change the market-based pricing framework.

The government is pursuing additional measures to ease fuel-price pressures, including negotiations over a proposed ₦1,350-per-litre ceiling on petrol landing costs and targeted support for vulnerable households and businesses.