Olawepo-Hashim Unveils Plan for N605 Fuel, Says Naira Is Undervalued

Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim, the Accord Party’s candidate for Nigeria’s 2027 presidential election, says petrol could sell for N605 per litre if domestic crude pricing and refining policy change.

Speaking in an interview with Channels Television, he based the proposed price on domestic crude costing about $30 per barrel, plus refining and logistics expenses and an energy tax to support alternative energy. He argued that the current pricing structure overvalues the commodity and places unnecessary costs on consumers.

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The domestic crude price, according to NNPC statistics, is $30, which is one of the highest production costs in the world. Saudi Arabia is $10. If you give them a margin of $15 on top of that, which is 50 per cent margin, you end up with $45. If you allocate $5 for refining and then transport and insurance, $7, you end up with $57. At the end of the day, what this translates to is about $0.34, which is N501 at an exchange rate of N1,400.

Olawepo-Hashim also challenged the government’s approach to the naira, saying increased crude production, lower petroleum imports and greater use of domestic crude in local refineries could strengthen Nigeria’s foreign exchange position. He said the country could produce 4 million barrels per day within 24 months and target an exchange rate between N525 and N700 per dollar.

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Nobody sells domestic crude at international prices. Saudi Arabia does not do it. Kuwait does not do it. No oil-producing country in OPEC does what Nigeria is doing.

He said domestic petroleum prices should not depend entirely on international crude prices. Domestic crude, he argued, should be priced differently from oil intended for export because oil-producing countries use local supplies to support industry and energy security.

“Nobody sells domestic crude at international prices. Saudi Arabia does not do it. Kuwait does not do it. No oil-producing country in OPEC does what Nigeria is doing,” he said. He also criticised continued imports of refined products and called for domestic crude supplies to Nigerian refineries, including the Dangote refinery and smaller private plants. His stated goal is to move Nigeria from a crude exporter reliant on imported fuel to a producer of refined products and petrochemicals.

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Who in this world tries to rob his own local economy of that comparative advantage? The comparative advantage we have is that we are an