The Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) has warned that the price of Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) could rise to as high as ₦2,000 per litre if urgent steps are not taken to address the effects of rising global crude oil prices and the weakening naira.
Speaking to journalists on Thursday, April 9, TUC President Festus Osifo urged the Federal Government to act swiftly by allocating 60 percent of excess crude oil revenue above the 2026 budget benchmark toward subsidising crude oil supplied to refineries such as the Dangote Refinery and other modular plants. According to him, this approach could reduce the pump prices of petrol, diesel, and jet fuel within a short period.
“Today, comrades, we are seeing that the cost of petrol is edging towards N2,000 per litre depending on the part of the country that you are. Nigerian workers are already passing through excruciating pain as we speak.
The same way it is affecting transportation, it is also affecting manufacturing. The cost of diesel has also gone northward, meaning that the cost of production has increased. When production costs rise, the final price of goods on the shelves will also skyrocket.
If this continues unchecked, the inflation that we are currently celebrating as going downwards will reverse and start moving up again,” he stated.
Osifo described the proposal as an urgent measure to ease the burden on Nigerians, especially workers who are already grappling with the rising cost of living driven by increasing fuel prices.
He explained that the 2026 Appropriation Act set the crude oil benchmark at $64.85 per barrel, while global prices are currently around $100 per barrel due to tensions in the Middle East and disruptions around the Strait of Hormuz. This, he noted, gives the government an excess revenue of about $35.15 per barrel.
“Take at least 60 percent of that excess fund about $20 per barrel and use it to subsidise the crude that is being supplied to Dangote Refineries and all modular refineries that predominantly produce AGO (diesel)” Osifo stated
He further argued that subsidising crude oil at the production stage is more effective than subsidising finished petroleum products, as it reduces the chances of corruption and misuse seen in past subsidy regimes.
“When you subsidise crude, it doesn’t have the ability to be abused because you are subsidising production directly. I can assure you that in the next one to two weeks, the price of PMS, AGO, and jet fuel will go down immediately”he said.