Economy
Fuel crisis: Nigerians face gloom Yuletide due to $90 million debt
Nigerians may experience severe PMS shortage for the holidays as shipowners threaten to quit providing services to the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation Limited because they have accrued a $90 million debt for their chartered services over the past nine months.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶
The ship owners told our correspondent that if nothing was done quickly to settle the indebtedness, they would be forced to terminate the arrangement they had with the NNPC.
A former President of the Nigerian Indigenous Shipowners Association, Aminu Umar, said if the issue was not satisfactorily addressed in the coming weeks, the current petrol supply hitches might be compounded as the members would not be able to fulfil their obligations.
Umar added that if the workers decided to stop because they were not being paid, it would affect the movement of cargoes and that would increase the already existing scarcity.
He said, “There are so many members whose funds have not been paid, so the President is speaking on behalf of SOAN members, who have done business with the NNPC Limited and moved some cargoes and payments are not made. The total amount is almost $90m or over and it is affecting the operations of those companies.
“This may cause more fuel crisis. It is not like the ship owners have stopped lifting for now, but as it is going, they may end up not lifting fuel. Because if someone is not being paid, how will he be able to discharge his duties?
“Remember they too have salaries to pay; they also have to maintain the ships and also pay the banks that fund them. So, all of them are facing problems because of their unpaid funds. In the coming weeks if nothing is done, there may be more fuel crisis because at the end of the day, they will not be able to fulfil their obligations. And if their workers decide to stop because they are not being paid, then it will affect the movement of cargoes and that will compound the already existing scarcity.”
The President, SOAN, MkGeorge Onyung, urged the NNPC Limited to try and pay up the ship owners to enable them to go back to work.
He said, “The NNPC Limited has yet to pay for standard operations. The fact is this, the NNPC contacted ship owners to provide it with Nigerian ships that will do coastal shipping. And we went through the whole processes of negotiations to arrive at the contract of time charter off the vessels for our coastal trade. Granted that the NNPC has metamorphosed into NNPC Limited and the process of transmission may be bureaucratic and of course time consuming.
“We are now almost in the ninth month of working for NNPC Limited and we are still waiting to be paid; that is the fact. Different companies have different contracts and rates. What I am trying to say is yes it is a huge amount of money because some of our members have outstanding with them that are owed before March this year, that is why the amount could reach $90m. The NNPC keeps saying that ship owners should bring evidence; that is not how it works; let them pay the money.”
We also learnt that some of the affected ship owners were contemplating taking legal actions against the NNPC Limited.
The ship owners, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitive nature of the matter, said the decision to seek legal counsel was based on the consideration that the NNPC was now a limited liability company that could be sued and also sue.
One of them explained, “The NNPC is now a limited liability company that can sue and be sued. Some of us are already considering seeking legal action, because the NNPC is a chronic debtor. The debt owed indigenous ship owners is just too much and the NNPC is not showing any sign of clearing it.
“If the NNPC owes foreign shipping companies the way it owes indigenous shipping firms, we wouldn’t be this bothered. But it seems it is only the indigenous operators that the NNPC toys with. We are not leaving any option out. Part of what some of us are considering is taking legal action, because we are already having issues with our banks. The debt is killing our businesses and the earlier the NNPC pays up, the better for us as business men.”
According to Nivo News, the World Bank has projected that Nigeria’s economy will grow by 4.4 percent in 2026 and 2027, driven by new tax legislation, prudent monetary policies, and ongoing economic reforms. The announcement was made in the bank’s January 2026 Global Economic Prospects report, which described the anticipated growth rate as the fastest for Nigeria in over a decade.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶
This latest projection represents an upgrade from the World Bank’s previous forecast of 3.7 percent published in June 2025. The bank highlighted that reforms in the tax system, combined with continued monetary prudence, are expected to stimulate economic activity, improve investor confidence, and reduce inflation. It also noted that increased oil production is likely to offset lower global oil prices, boosting fiscal revenue and strengthening Nigeria’s external balance.
The projection comes against the backdrop of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth of 3.98 percent year-on-year in real terms during the third quarter of 2025, as reported by the National Bureau of Statistics.
Nigeria’s headline inflation rate eased to 14.45 per cent year on year in November 2025, according to the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) report released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). The report showed that while consumer prices continued to rise on a monthly basis, annual inflation moderated significantly under the revised base year.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶
The CPI increased to 130.5 points in November from 128.9 points in October, marking a 1.6-point month-on-month rise. Despite this, the headline inflation rate declined from 16.05 per cent recorded in October. The NBS highlighted that the November 2025 figure represents a 1.6 percentage point decrease compared with the previous month.
Monthly inflation, however, rose to 1.22 per cent in November from 0.93 per cent in October, indicating that average prices increased at a faster pace during the month despite the moderation in annual inflation. Headline inflation for November 2025 was 20.15 percentage points lower than the 34.60 per cent recorded in November 2024, reflecting the impact of the rebasing exercise that reset the base year to 2024 from 2009.
Over the twelve months ending November 2025, the average CPI increased by 20.41 per cent, down sharply from 32.77 per cent in the corresponding period of 2024. Food and non-alcoholic beverages remained the largest contributor to annual headline inflation at 5.78 percentage points, followed by restaurants and accommodation services at 1.87 percentage points, and transport at 1.54 percentage points. Housing, water, electricity, gas and other fuels added 1.22 percentage points, while education and health contributed 0.90 and 0.88 percentage points, respectively. On a month-on-month basis, food and non-alcoholic beverages drove price increases with a contribution of 0.49 percentage points.
Urban inflation declined sharply to 13.61 per cent year on year in November, down 23.49 percentage points from November 2024, while rural inflation remained higher at 15.15 per cent but fell 17.12 percentage points from the previous year. Month-on-month, urban inflation slowed to 0.95 per cent, while rural inflation accelerated to 1.88 per cent.
Food inflation moderated annually to 11.08 per cent in November 2025 from 39.93 per cent in November 2024. Monthly food inflation rose to 1.13 per cent, driven by price increases in items such as dried tomatoes, cassava tubers, ground pepper, eggs, crayfish, egusi, oxtail, and fresh onions. Core inflation, which excludes volatile agricultural and energy prices, stood at 18.04 per cent year on year, down from 28.75 per cent in November 2024.
State-level data showed Rivers recorded the highest year-on-year inflation at 17.78 per cent, followed by Ogun at 17.65 per cent and Ekiti at 16.77 per cent. Plateau had the lowest at 9.13 per cent, alongside Kebbi at 10.32 per cent and Katsina at 10.60 per cent. The NBS cautioned that interstate comparisons should be interpreted carefully due to differing consumption patterns and CPI weights across states.
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has set a crude oil production target of more than two million barrels per day for 2026, citing strong collaboration with pipeline host communities as a key factor in sustaining increased output.....KINDLY READ THE FULL STORY HERE▶
Akponime Omojevwhe, Head of Field Operations, Eastern Corridor, Project Monitoring Office (PMO), disclosed the projection during a monthly stakeholders’ meeting with host communities along the Trans Niger Pipeline in Port Harcourt. The meeting was organized by Pipeline Infrastructure Nigeria Limited (PINL).
Omojevwhe revealed that the 2026 national production budget is pegged at 2.80 million barrels per day (mbpd), with a starting benchmark of 1.84 mbpd and a targeted achievable output of 2.06 mbpd. He affirmed that the Trans Niger Pipeline is currently operating efficiently, attributing its success to the active cooperation between local communities, stakeholders, and PINL.
He emphasized that community participation is critical to pipeline protection, stating, “No private security structure can succeed without grassroots involvement. The communities are a vital part of this job. Their continued support ensures uninterrupted flow along the pipeline.”
Edi Julius, representing the Minister of State for Petroleum (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri, lauded the partnership between PINL and the communities, noting that local peace is essential for boosting national oil production. “We are confident that by 2026, Nigeria will exceed two million barrels per day, generating additional revenue and enabling greater support for host communities,” he added.
Dr. Akpos Mezeh, General Manager of Community and Stakeholders’ Relations at PINL, reviewed the year’s progress, highlighting achievements such as strengthened security along the TNP corridor, expanded stakeholder engagement, empowerment programs for women and students, zero incidence of illegal bunkering, and improved community-company trust. He also announced Christmas palliatives for the 215 TNP host communities.
Responding on behalf of the host communities, His Majesty King Philip Osaro Obele urged the federal government to channel more development projects into the region. He praised PINL for its transparency and consistent engagement, emphasizing that ongoing dialogue is essential to maintaining peace along the pipeline.
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