The Federal Government may have abandoned the implementation of the Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) national strategic policy for importation of Kerosene because it is making more money from the latter product.
The LPG policy highlights steps to be taken to stimulate and promote the use of LPG among the Nigerian populace, with a view to discouraging the use of Kerosene.
Experts say LPG is cleaner, healthier and cheaper to use than kerosene and wood, and further provides a viable alternative to the depletion of the nation’s forests on account of the use of wood as a cooking fuel.
There are claims that there is a kerosene cartel which is allocated the product at 50 kobo per litre and sells at between N150 and N200 per litre to the public in various parts of the country.
Some industry operators who spoke to BusinessDay said there were so many contending interests working against the implementations of the LPG project in the country, despite its benefits.
The operators preferred not to be named, for fear they could be victimised.
Experts say some of the hurdles to the accomplishment of the project include infrastructure, supply, pricing, safety and regulation.
According to the LPG policy document which is in possession of BusinessDAY, the government had planned for immediate and short term measures to stimulate the market.
The immediate plan includes the launching of a pilot programme to replace kerosene with LPG for poorer households within defined geographical areas in several representative states, making provision of free or low cost starter kit cylinders, basics appliances and fuel, to significantly increase importation and local manufacture of cylinders.
According to the document, the Federal Government planned to set up what it described as LPG price support via subsidies, meaning that there would be subsidy for the commodity for a limited transition period of between 2-5 years.
To ensure effective take-off of this scheme, an escrow account which would hold the transitional subsidy was to be domiciled in the Federal Ministry of Finance.
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According to the time lines contained in the draft, the implementation of the plans was supposed to have commenced in 2013.
Going by the stated action plan in the policy, the Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources, under the leadership of Diezani Alison-Madueke, the minister controlling the industry, should have appointed a consultant to advise the ministry on how to implement the LPG programme.
Following this, the minister was supposed to have secured the approval of the Federal Executive Council, so that action would be taken towards the implementation of the policy.
After the above process must have been implemented to the letter by both the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Department of Petroleum Resources and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) they should have jointly developed and implemented a pilot project of converting kerosene users to LPG consumers.
By 2013 the consultant should have hit the ground running by advising these three government agencies to inject cylinders into the market, substitute kerosene for LPG, and introduce conversion kits for auto use.
Approval was expected to have been secured from the Federal Government for the implementation plan, the same year.
Between 2013and 2014 the Cylinder Injection Pilot Project should have been presented to the Federal Executive Council (FEC) for approval, for the purpose of sensitising Nigerians about the advantages using LPG has over kerosene.
The strategic policy objective of government for LPG are: to ensure rapid growth of the domestics markets for LPG in the country, ensure that the commodity becomes competitive and affordable, substitute kerosene and firewood with LPG, thereby improving health, safety, and the environment.
Other objectives include to ensure safe operations and improve safety in the Nigeria LPG industry; and ensure competitive economic development benefits.
But, according to a source, “This will take a special miracle to be accomplished, from the look of things.”
Olusola Bello
