The average retail price for refilling a 12.5kg cylinder of Liquefied Petroleum Gas, LPG, otherwise known as cooking gas dropped by 13.04 per cent on a month-on-month basis to N14,375 in April 2024 from N16,250 in March 2024.

Checks by Vanguard showed that the price of 1kg of gas dropped by 13.04 percent to N1,150 from N1,300.

In a telephone interview on this development, the National President of the Nigerian Association of Liquified Petroleum Gas Marketers, NALPGAM, Mr. Olatunbosun Oladapo, said the drop in price of cooking gas cuts across both retail and wholesale outlets.

He further noted that the drop improved much better than previous months adding that one significant effort made by the government is the banned exportation of gas and the increase in minimum wage which will enhance Nigerians purchasing power.

“Before now a kilogram of cooking gas was sold between N1,300 and N1,400 per kg but now, it retails between N1,000 to N1,200. In some areas, it retails at N1,150 per kg.

“The drop in price may not be what Nigerians expect as the value of naira to dollar averages at N1,200. Therefore, the price of gas is influenced by the exchange rate. The supply of gas has improved but the challenge encountered in the industry is that the purchasing power of Nigerians is very low due to poor minimum wage but with the recent increase, we believe it will improve.

“The total consumption for the nation is about 1.2 million metric tonnes per annum. We expect it to increase up to 1.4 million, 1.5 million metric tons and even above, as we have the capacity to do more than that. As naira continues to gain strength daily so also the price of gas will continue to nosedive. We hope gas price drops further in the coming months,” he added.