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Newnaija 
The price hike announcement came amid the commencement of the sale of PMS by Dangote Refinery.
The average pump price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) has continually maintained an upward trajectory despite the commencement of petrol supply by the Dangote refinery.
Recently, Nigerians were jolted a few weeks ago with news that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) had officially hiked the PMS pump price from ₦617 per litre to ₦855 per litre at its retail outlets. The price hike announcement came amid the commencement of the sale of PMS by Dangote Refinery.
With NNPC and other major markets adjusting their pump prices to the new amount, other marketers across the country quickly followed suit adjusting their pump prices to reflect the new rate. The pump price of PMS quickly surged to about ₦800 in some locations while in other states, a litre of fuel has risen to between ₦1,000 and ₦1,200.
The astronomical hike in the pump price of PMS has resulted in adverse effects on the country’s economy, businesses and daily life of citizens as transport fares have surged by over 50% in some states while many car owners have been forced to sell off or park their cars and turn to alternative forms of transport.
The price fluctuations have been linked to several factors like the subsidy removal and the global price of crude oil. The NNPCL further explained that the high cost of PMS was not related to supply issues but based on market realities.
This also has led to a non-uniformity in the cost of PMS as residents in different states have a different price range and pay either higher or a lesser amount for the commodity.
The Premium Motor Spirit – (Petrol) Price Watch report by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) for August 2024 shows that the price of PMS across several states ranged between 600-1000 and the top 10 states with the highest PMS pump prices per litre were shown as follows:
| S/N | State | Av. Pump Price |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Benue | 941.24 |
| 2 | Bauchi | 935.71 |
| 3 | Gombe | 925.00 |
| 4 | Yobe | 916.00 |
| 5 | Jigawa | 902.67 |
| 6 | Taraba | 899.67 |
| 7 | Borno | 893.29 |
| 8 | Imo | 891.93 |
| 9 | Abia | 887.72 |
| 10 | Zamfara | 887.69 |
From the table, Benue State residents paid the highest average retail price for PMS at ₦941.24. Bauchi and Gombe States were next, with ₦935.71 and ₦925.00, respectively. The lowest average pump price of PMS was recorded in Delta, Cross River, and Edo States, at ₦667.50, ₦672.00, and ₦676.25 respectively.
The data also shows the North-East region recorded the highest average price of PMS at ₦908.21, while the South-South Zone had the lowest average price at ₦677.11.
