Long queues are beginning to build up at MRS filling stations where petrol is sold below N1,000 per litre, as consumers go in search of cheaper products.
Reports quoting market survey on Saturday morning noted that private car owners and commercial bus drivers are starting to form long lines at MRS stations, especially along the Ibadan/Lagos Expressway, for petrol currently sold at N937 per litre.
Other stations along the same axis, however, do not have long queues like the MRS station at Alapere, Lagos, as most have increased pump prices above N1,000.
While Eterna Plc has hiked price to N1,040, North West Capital Oil, and Fatgbems also adjusted their prices to N1,030 per litre, with Mobil Station’s a bit lower at N1,025 per litre.
Despite the rush for petrol, few stations, including the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited, have shut their gates against buyers.
The State-owned oil company’s station at OPIC Estate remaine shut as of 7:00am on Saturday. It could not be ascertained whether the move was due to product shortages or otherwise.
Also, some of TotalEnergies stations along the Expressway were not selling product as of the time of filing this report, while others recorded just a few buyers lurking at their gates.
The development followed a sharp surge in global crude oil prices above the $80 per barrel threshold earlier in the week.
Reports surfaced on Tuesday that Dangote Petroleum Refinery & Petrochemicals had increased the ex-depot price of petrol from N774 to N874 per litre, representing a N100 hike.
Oil prices shot up during the week as investors kept tabs on the Middle East as the United States and Israel continued to bombard Iran, while Tehran launched further strikes on neighbours.
The attacks on the Islamic State have upended regional energy flows, with the crucial Strait of Hormuz — through which about a fifth of global oil transits — effectively closed off. The conflicts have also fuelled fears of a fresh energy crisis that could ramp up inflation.
Market moves have been comparatively mild amid hopes that the crisis will be short-lived and not cause a major problem for the global economy.
But analysts warned that the longer it goes on, the more painful it would be on the global economy as supply chains are hit and prices surge.
Iran has responded by unleashing missiles and drones across the Middle East, including Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and Dubai, while explicitly threatening to drive up global energy costs.
That sent oil prices soaring nearly 14 per cent Monday before slightly easing, while European natural gas prices spiked almost 40 per cent after Qatar’s State-run energy firm said it had halted liquefied natural gas production.
Meanwhile, a general in Iran’s Revolutionary Guards threatened to “burn any ship” seeking to navigate the Strait of Hormuz.
“We will also attack oil pipelines and will not allow a single drop of oil to leave the region. Oil price will reach $200 in the coming days,” he warned.
Crude rose at least two percent on Tuesday, as analysts say the rise in energy costs could give most central bankers a headache as they look to bring down inflation while also cutting interest rates to support their economies.
