Despite the current economic downturn and scarcity of foreign exchange, airlines are also grappling with aviation fuel scarcity, which is currently sold at N250 per litre.
This increase is coming three days after the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) said aviation fuel scarcity would soon be a thing of the past, but for the first time, the commodity is selling between N200 and N250 per litre.
BusinessDay checks show that only two marketers, Sahara Oil and Total Oil supplied Jet A1 to virtually all the carriers, thereby putting huge pressure on airlines and passengers, who struggled to get on-board flights to their different destinations.
As a result of the fuel shortages, Arik Air’s ticket fare jumped 22.7 percent to N54,000 from previous rates of N44,000 to N48,000 for a return ticket from Lagos to Abuja and Lagos to Port Harcourt, when aviation fuel price was stable.
First Nation and Med-view Airlines also saw fares rise 9.5 percent to N46,000 from N42,000 for a Lagos – Abuja and Lagos – Port Harcourt return ticket, during the period.
Airfares for Dana Airline had remained constant but the airline said they were currently monitoring the inflation situation to ascertain how much it would affect their cost of operations.
The NCAA few weeks back said it did not authorise airlines to increase airfares, just as the aviation regulatory body said airfares, add-ons, charges, tariffs and terms and condition of service were fully liberalised.
According to Sam Adurogboye, spokesman for NCAA, airfares and sundry charges have been statutorily deregulated and subjected to market forces.
“The scarcity of aviation fuel or increase in the price of aviation fuel will automatically cause airlines to increase airfares to cushion effect of the cost of operations,” Tayo Ojuri, industry expert and CEO of Aglo Limited, an aviation support service company, told BusinessDay.
According to Ojuri, aviation is a function of disposable income and the people that travel in Nigeria are more of a travel driven by business, especially for domestic travel.
“Looking at the routes, Lagos to Abuja, Lagos to Port Harcourt, Lagos to Kano, Abuja to Asaba, these routes are driven by business. The other option for airlines will be for them to increase their fares and increasing fares will mean increase on the cost of goods and services for people that travel by air,” he explained.
Spokesman for Dana Air, Kingsley Ezenwa, disclosed that his airline like many other airlines were facing serious challenges, adding that, “We have not cancelled flights and we don’t have the intention to do so but one thing is certain, we have witnessed delays and we will run all our schedules.”
Meanwhile, the NCAA in a statement said the Federal Government was already engaging stakeholders involved with the procurement and distribution of aviation fuel to ensure availability in earnest.
The authority called on all passengers experiencing the attendant flight delays and cancellations arising from the scarcity of Aviation fuel to exercise restraint.
