DistantNews
Support us
🇳🇬 Nigeria /Economy & Trade

Cooking gas price hike deepens Nigerians’ woes

From The Punch · () English

Summarized and contextualized by DistantNews.

At a glance

News Named sources Context piece
  • Nigerians are facing a severe cooking gas price hike, with the cost per kilogram doubling in recent weeks, making it unaffordable for many households.
  • Despite Nigeria's vast natural gas reserves, the country remains dependent on imports for half of its cooking gas needs, leading to supply disruptions and soaring prices.
  • The crisis threatens to push millions back to using firewood and charcoal, exacerbating health problems and environmental degradation, as an estimated 160 million Nigerians lack access to clean cooking solutions.

Millions of Nigerian households are grappling with a fresh wave of hardship as cooking gas prices have surged to alarming levels in the last two weeks of May. This price spike, occurring just before the Eid al-Kabir festival, has compounded the existing cost-of-living crisis.

Such a situation is indefensible in a country where the minimum wage is N70,000 per month, and millions earn far less.

— The PunchEditorial commentary highlighting the unaffordability of the cooking gas price increase.

What once cost about 1,050 Nigerian naira per kilogram now ranges between 2,000 and 2,200 naira. Refilling a standard 12.5kg cylinder now exceeds 25,000 naira, a sum that is particularly burdensome in a country where the minimum wage is 70,000 naira per month, and many earn significantly less.

A country so richly endowed with gas resources should not remain dependent on imports for half of its cooking gas needs.

— The PunchEditorial commentary on Nigeria's paradox of gas wealth and import dependency.

This situation is starkly contrasted by Nigeria's status as the ninth-largest holder of natural gas reserves globally, with 210.54 trillion cubic feet. Yet, the nation relies on imports for half of its cooking gas. Local supply, according to the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, ranges between 3,300 and 4,500 tonnes daily. Despite this domestic capacity, consumers face escalating prices and fears of scarcity.

Any development that pushes citizens away from cleaner cooking energy should therefore be viewed as a national emergency.

— The PunchEditorial commentary emphasizing the severe health and environmental consequences of the crisis.

The potential return to traditional fuels like firewood, charcoal, and kerosene could worsen poverty and accelerate environmental damage. Over 160 million of Nigeria's estimated 237 million people still lack access to clean cooking solutions, leading to an estimated 80,000 to 95,000 premature deaths annually from indoor air pollution. The Nigerian Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers has warned of erratic supply and rising costs, with marketers paying between 25.2 million and 26.2 million naira for 20 metric tonnes of LPG.

The current crisis is rooted in supply disruptions that began in October 2025 following the dispute between the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, which triggered shutdowns across parts of the oil and gas sector.

— The PunchExplanation of the supply chain issues contributing to the price surge.
DistantNews Editorial

Originally published by The Punch. Summarized and contextualized by our editorial team with added local perspective. Read our editorial standards.

More Stories

From Our Blog