The Federal Government has called for the development of a regional benchmark for petroleum products in West Africa, arguing that disruptions in Western Europe and the Mediterranean should not automatically determine fuel prices in African markets.
The government, through the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), said West Africa needed a pricing system that reflected the region’s own market conditions rather than relying heavily on external benchmarks.
The Authority argued that African markets could no longer afford a situation where crises or supply disruptions in Western Europe and the Mediterranean automatically trigger changes in petroleum product prices across the region, even when the underlying factors have little or no direct connection to West Africa.
The Chief Executive of the NMDPRA, Rabiu Umar, stated this on Tuesday at the second West Africa Refined Fuel Market Conference in Abuja.
The conference brought together regulators, refiners, traders, financiers and other stakeholders to advance efforts towards establishing a transparent and reliable regional pricing system for refined petroleum products.
Umar said developing a regional benchmark would strengthen the resilience of West Africa’s petroleum market and provide pricing mechanisms that better reflect local supply, demand and infrastructure realities.
The conference is jointly hosted by the NMDPRA, S&P Global Commodity Insights and the West Africa Regulator Forum.
It is themed: “Funding West Africa Infrastructure & Distribution to Create a Transparent Market for Regional Price Benchmarks.”
