The Liquefied Petroleum Gas Retailers branch of the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers has faulted claims by the Nigerian Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers that retailers are to blame for the recent surge in cooking gas prices across the country.

In a statement signed by the branch’s National Chairman, Ayobami Olarinoye, on Saturday, the retailers said the recent scarcity and sharp increase in liquefied petroleum gas prices had brought untold hardship to Nigerian households and businesses. They described the development as deeply concerning and said they felt compelled to respond to recent comments by NALPGAM’s National President, Oladapo Olatunbosun, who attributed the price hike to gas retailers.

Sunday PUNCH reports that the price of cooking gas rose from an average of N1,000 per kilogramme to as high as N2,000/kg in some locations. This followed a recent strike by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria during its dispute with the Dangote Refinery. Almost two weeks after the strike was suspended, prices have yet to ease, while scarcity has continued to worsen.

Appearing on Channels Television, Olatunbosun had attributed the price surge to temporary supply disruptions and market exploitation by some operators. He insisted there had been no official increment in the price of LPG, blaming the situation on opportunistic marketers exploiting supply gaps created by the PENGASSAN strike.

“I sympathise with Nigerians as the President of NALPGAM because we never intended to have a situation like this. I must say categorically that prices of cooking gas have not gone up officially. What is happening is that some marketers are taking advantage of the supply shortage and market forces to make quick profits, which is wrong. We frown at this as an association,” Olatunbosun said.

However, the LPG Retailers disagreed, describing his comments as “unfair and misguided.”

“While we respect NALPGAM as a senior partner in the LPG sector, we cannot help but feel that this blame-shifting is unjustified. As retailers, we do not operate at the depot level, we are not importers of LPG, nor do we participate in off-taking. Our operations are limited to buying from plant owners and selling to end-users,” the statement said.

The group explained that supply inconsistencies had created high demand and inflated prices, despite the Dangote Refinery not increasing its rates.

“Many retailers have been forced to travel to neighbouring states to source gas at exorbitant prices. Plant owners have also raised prices, making it difficult to maintain previous retail rates. It’s basic economics, when our costs rise, prices must adjust accordingly. We are all business people, and it’s unfair to expect us to sell at unsustainable prices,” the group added.

The retailers also criticised NALPGAM for attempting to shift public blame to them, noting that the issue was far more complex.

“We find it unfortunate that NALPGAM is trying to place the blame solely on retailers. The issue requires a collaborative approach to address the root causes, playing the blame game will not help the sector,” they said.

Appealing to customers, the group explained that many of its members had shut down operations due to their inability to access supplies.

“Our members share in the public’s pain and are doing everything possible to help resolve the ongoing crisis. Many retailers have closed shops for days or even weeks due to the lack of supply, suffering huge financial losses while searching for gas with little success,” the statement noted.

The group expressed optimism that the situation would stabilise soon, emphasising that market forces, not retailers, were driving the current crisis.


“We are confident that, together, we can overcome this challenge and restore stability. What’s happening is simply the law of demand and supply at work, not the fault of retailers,” the statement concluded.