Business

Oil Price Increases As OPEC Projects Slow Growth In 2022

Published

4 years ago

January 4, 2022

The price of Brent, the crude against which Nigeria’s oil is priced, increased marginally on Monday as the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries projected a slow growth momentum in terms of economic recovery this year.

Also, OPEC announced the appointment of its next Secretary-General, expected to assume office in August 2022, following the expiration of the second term of Nigeria’s Sanusi Barkindo, in July.

Oil price figures seen in Abuja on Monday showed that the cost of Brent appreciated by 1.12 per cent or $0.87 to $78.65 per barrel as at 5.10pm Nigerian time.

It was further observed that price increases were also recorded in oil grades in the OPEC Basket and WTI crude on Monday.

Crude oil in the OPEC Basket rose to $77.97 per barrel, representing a 5.04 per cent or $3.74 rise as at 5.10pm, when compared to what was posted the previous day.

For WTI crude, the commodity appreciated marginally in price, as it increased by 0.73 per cent or $0.55 to $75.76 as at 5.10pm on Monday.

Meanwhile, in his opening remarks at the 58th Meeting of the Joint Technical Committee via videoconference on Monday, Barkindo expressed hope that the oil sector would record progress in 2022, but stressed that the challenges posed by the Omicron variant of COVID-19 had been tough.

The OPEC scribe noted that the world had learnt several hard lessons over the past two years, as many economies were now better equipped today to manage COVID-19 and its side effects.

“Despite the steady progress that has been made in terms of the economic recovery, we do expect significant levels of uncertainty in the weeks to come, which could slow the growth momentum,” Barkindo, however, stated.

This came as a special meeting of the conference of OPEC, which was held via videoconference on Monday, under the Chairmanship of its President, Bruno Jean-Richard Itoua, announced the appointment of a new Secretary-General for the oil cartel.

OPEC disclosed this in a statement issued by the Vienna-based organisation after the special meeting.

“In accordance with Article 28 of the OPEC Statute and in application of the procedure decided at the 182nd meeting of the conference on December 1, 2021, the conference decided by acclamation to appoint by Mr. Haitham Al-Ghais of Kuwait as Secretary-General of the organisation, with effect from August 1, 2022, for a period of three years,” the statement read in part.

It described Al-Ghais as a veteran of the Kuwait Petroleum Corporation and Kuwait’s OPEC Governor from 2017 to June 2021, as he currently serves as Deputy Managing Director for International Marketing at KPC.

The conference also expressed its appreciation to Nigeria’s Sanusi Barkindo for his leadership during his two-term tenure as Secretary-General beginning on August 1, 2016 and ending on July 31, 2022.

Barkindo is a long-serving veteran of Nigeria’s oil industry and OPEC, who has been instrumental in expanding OPEC’s historical efforts to support sustainable oil market stability through enhanced dialogue and cooperation with many energy stakeholders, including the landmark Declaration of Cooperation since its inception in December 2016.

These efforts are widely credited with helping to stabilise the global oil market since the unprecedented market downturn related to the COVID-19 pandemic, and providing a platform for recovery.

Before being appointed Secretary-General, Barkindo held a number of key roles at OPEC between 1986 and 2010, including acting Secretary-General in 2006.

He is known internationally for helping to produce the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Kyoto protocol as the leader of Nigeria’s technical delegation to the UN negotiations in 1991.

He has remained a key contributor to the UNFCCC process, including most recently at the 26th Conference of Parties meeting in Glasgow in October and November 2021.

(PUNCH)

Business

Naira Depreciates Against Dollar

Published

1 week ago

July 4, 2025

Editor

The Naira experienced a slight depreciation on Friday at the official market, trading at N1,528.56 to the dollar.

Data obtained from the website of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) showed that the Naira lost N2.73.

This represents a 0.17 percent loss compared to the N1,525.82 recorded on Thursday.

The Naira, which opened the week on Monday with a gain of N9.52 against the dollar, held steady gains until Thursday.

On Wednesday, the local currency gained N3.42 against the dollar and received commendation from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The IMF, in its 2025 Article IV Consultation report on Nigeria, commended the CBN for its reforms to the foreign exchange market, which supported price discovery and liquidity.

Business

JUST IN: Dangote Refinery Hikes Petrol Ex-depot Price

Published

3 weeks ago

June 20, 2025

Editor

Nigerians may soon pay more for petrol as the Dangote Petroleum Refinery on Friday increased its ex-depot price for Premium Motor Spirit to N880 per litre, raising fresh concerns over fuel affordability and price volatility in the downstream sector.

Checks on petroleumprice.ng, a platform tracking daily product prices, and a Pro Forma Invoice seen by The PUNCH confirmed the hike, representing a N55 increase from the previous rate of N825 per litre.

The increment would ripple across the entire fuel distribution chain, likely pushing pump prices above N900/litre in some parts of the country, especially in areas far from the distribution hubs.

The hike comes despite global crude prices falling. Brent crude dipped by 3.02% to $76.47, WTI fell to $74.93, and Murban dropped to $76.97 on Friday. The decline in benchmarks offers little relief due to persistent fears of sudden supply disruptions.

The refinery has increased its reliance on imported U.S. crude and operational costs amid exchange rate instability, which adds to its pricing pressure.

On Thursday, the President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, said his 650,000-barrel capacity refinery is “increasingly” relying on the United States for crude oil.

This came as findings showed that the Dangote Petroleum Refinery is projected to import a total of 17.65 million barrels of crude oil between April and July 2025, beginning with about 3.65 million barrels already delivered in the past two months, amid ongoing allocations under the Federal Government’s naira-for-crude policy.

Dangote informed the Technical Committee of the One-Stop Shop for the sale of crude and refined products in naira initiative that the refinery was still battling crude shortages, which had led it to resort to imports from the United States.

On Monday, the president of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, Festus Osifo, accused oil marketers of exploiting Nigerians through inflated petrol prices, insisting that the current pump price of PMS should range between N700 and N750 per litre.

He criticised the disparity between falling global crude oil prices and the stagnant retail price of petrol in Nigeria.

“If you go online and check the PLAT cost per cubic metre of PMS, convert that to litres and then to our Naira, you will see that with crude at around $60 per barrel, petrol should be retailing between N700 and N750 per litre.”

He asserted that if Nigerians bear the brunt of higher fuel costs, they should be allowed to enjoy the benefit of low pricing.

His forecast of increased costs now appears spot on, considering the latest developments.

Marketers are already adjusting. Depot owners and fuel distributors in Lagos and other cities anticipate a domino effect, with new price bands expected to follow Dangote’s lead.

Many had held back pricing decisions since Tuesday, when the refinery halted sales and withheld fresh PFIs. The delay fueled speculation, allowing opportunistic price hikes across various depots.

Business

Naira Appreciates At Official Market

Published

2 months ago

May 24, 2025

Editor

The Naira, which has seen steady appreciation against the Dollar all week, closed stronger on Friday, trading at ₦1,580.44 in the official forex market.

Data from the Central Bank of Nigeria’s website show the Naira gained ₦4.51k against the Dollar on Friday alone.

This marks a 0.28 per cent appreciation from Thursday’s closing rate of ₦1,584.95 in the official foreign exchange window.

The local currency maintained consistent strength throughout the week, recording gains daily.

On Monday, May 19, it traded at ₦1,598.68; on Tuesday, at ₦1,590.45; and on Wednesday, at ₦1,584.49.

These gains suggest increased investor confidence and improved forex supply, contributing to the naira’s performance.

Meanwhile, the CBN, at its 300th Monetary Policy Committee meeting held Monday and Tuesday, retained the Monetary Policy Rate at 27.5 per cent.