The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reports that Nigerians' spending on filling cooking gas cylinders increased by 69.15% year on year.
The States with the highest gas prices during this period include Rivers, Cross River, and Abia, all of which are involved in oil and gas production.
The lowest average price was recorded in Bauchi at N13,425.00, followed by Nassarawa at N13,640.94 and Adamawa at N13,725.00.
"The average retail price for refilling a 12.5kg cylinder of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) rose by 9.05% month-on-month, from N14,261.57 in July 2024 to N15,552.56 in August 2024. Year-on-year, this marks a 69.15% increase from N9,194.41 in August 2023.
"Rivers had the highest average price at N17,086.36, followed by Cross River at N17,050.00 and Abia at N17,012.52.
"Also, the lowest average price was recorded in Bauchi with N13,425.00, followed by Nassarawa and Adamawa with N13,640.94 and N13,725.00 respectively", NBS data for August revealed.
In August 2024, NBS data showed that the headline inflation rate is at 32.15% relative to the July 2024 headline inflation rate of 33.40%.
Although the federal government removed Value Added Tax (VAT) on cooking gas last October, prices have not dropped significantly.
With about 209 trillion cubic feet (TCF) of gas reserves, Nigeria struggles to fully utilize this resource due to inadequate investment in the sector.
Additionally, the zone analysis revealed that the South-South had the highest average retail price for refilling a 12.5kg cylinder of cooking gas at N16,524.00, followed closely by the South-East at N16,495.78. In contrast, the North-Central region reported the lowest price at N14,767.41.
Furthermore, the average retail price for refilling a 5kg cylinder of cooking gas rose by 7.62% month-on-month, increasing from N5,974.55 in July 2024 to N6,430.02 in August 2024. Year-on-year, this reflects a 56.25% increase from N4,115.32 in August 2023.
In state analysis, Benue and Sokoto reported the highest average price for refilling a 5kg cylinder at N7,000.00, followed by Rivers at N6,954.55 and Borno at N6,914.29.
Conversely, Taraba had the lowest price at N5,600.67, followed by Abuja at N5,825.00 and Kogi at N5,857.56.
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Zone analysis revealed that the South-East recorded the highest average retail price for refilling a 5kg cylinder of LPG at N6,585.18, followed by the South-South at N6,451.34, while the North-Central had the lowest at N6,344.29.
