The price of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), commonly known as cooking gas, has surged from N700 per kg in June 2023, when President Bola Tinubu took office, to N1,500 per kg in October 2024, according to The PUNCH. This marks a staggering 114% increase over 16 months.
This spike in LPG prices is largely attributed to the rising exchange rate, as the product is dollar-denominated. The devaluation and floating of the naira by the Tinubu administration have resulted in a sharp decline, with the naira now trading around N1,700 to a dollar, compared to less than N700 in May 2023.
Suresh Kumar, Managing Director/CEO of NIPCO Plc, noted that over 60% of the cooking gas consumed in Nigeria is imported. At a recent conference hosted by the Nigerian Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers in Lagos, he emphasized the need for the government to incentivize Chevron to convert more of its propane output into butane, which is more suitable for domestic use. Currently, less than 40% of the 1.5 million metric tonnes consumed locally is produced domestically.
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With the fluctuating exchange rate and Nigeria’s reliance on imports, concerns persist that cooking gas prices will continue to rise. A report from the National Bureau of Statistics revealed that the average retail price for refilling a 5kg cylinder of LPG increased by 4.19% from N6,430.02 in August 2024 to N6,699.63 in September 2024, marking a year-on-year rise of 59.90% from N4,189.96 in September 2023.
State-by-state analysis shows Rivers had the highest average price for a 5kg cylinder at N7,285.71, followed by Gombe and Borno. Conversely, Kebbi recorded the lowest price at N5,950.
For a 12.5kg cylinder, the average retail price rose by 4.89% month-on-month, from N15,552 in August 2024 to N16,313 in September 2024, with a year-on-year increase of 76.41% from N9,247.40 in September 2023. Rivers again had the highest average price at N17,993, while Adamawa had the lowest at N13,983.
The overall trend shows cooking gas prices have risen from approximately N300/kg in 2017 to around N1,500/kg in October 2024. This escalation, coupled with challenges following fuel subsidy removal and the naira’s instability, has led many Nigerians to revert to traditional cooking methods, raising concerns over the country’s clean cooking initiatives and deforestation.
Samuel Nwanze, Executive Director and CFO of Heirs Energies, stated that Nigeria requires $7.5 billion to meet its clean cooking goals by 2030. Ogun State’s Commissioner for Environment, Ola Oresanya, warned that if LPG prices continue to soar, many might turn to charcoal as an alternative.
The International Energy Agency reported that around 500,000 women in Africa die prematurely each year due to cooking with firewood and charcoal, highlighting the critical impact of energy access on health and well-being.
