TheCable

Nigeria is the eighth cheapest place in the world to buy petrol according to a report by Bloomberg.

The report explained that Nigeria’s selling price of N145 (equivalent to $0.40 per litre) and $1.52 per gallon makes it one of the 10 cheapest places in the world to buy gasoline compared to a global average of $1.12 per litre.

The report said despite being a top producer of oil, Nigeria still experienced shortages in supply of petrol.

It pointed to the price cap on petrol set by the federal government as one of the causes of instability in the supply of the product, adding that Nigeria’s import dependence is caused largely by the “decrepit state of its refineries”.

“Part of the problem is that, despite pumping 1.8 million barrels a day of crude, Nigeria has to import almost all its fuel because of the decrepit state of its refineries,” the report stated.

“A bigger problem is that Nigeria caps gasoline prices, often at levels below retailers’ costs.

“The cap today is set at 145 naira, or $0.40, a litre, which would translate to $1.52 per gallon.

“That makes the West African nation one of the 10 cheapest places in the world to buy gasoline and compares to a global average of $1.12 and a U.S. average of $0.73 per litre, according to GlobalPetrolPrices.com.”

Other countries listed in the report are Venezuela ($0.01), Turkmenistan ($0.29), Kuwait ($0.35), Iran ($0.36), Egypt ($0.37), Algeria ($0.37), Ecuador ($0.39), Bahrain ($0.42) and Syria ($0.44).