FG to unveil new policy on fuel subsidy –Kachikwu

The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Ibe Kachickwu, has said that the Federal Government would in the next few days unveil a new policy to address the problem of fuel subsidy in the country.
Kachikwuwho disclosed this during a town hall meeting in Kaduna on Tuesday said that the introduction of price modulation had helped to stabilise the problem, however, he said it was necessary for the country’s oil sector to reflect global pricing of the product.

We are coming up with a policy in the next few days that will allow us develop the price modulation that allow us swing our price along with international pricing. We are now transiting into fuel modulating pricing because we do not have sufficient foreign exchange to continue fuel importation like we have been doing.

Therefore, NNPC has to produce about 100 percent of the product, that is the cause of the scarcity, “ he said.
The Minister said that the NNPC did not also have the logistics and coverage for effective distribution of the product.
He explained that there was no money allocated for fuel subsidy in the 2016 budget.

The Federal Government has struggled to offset about N600 billion subsidy balance when the administration came into power, “ he said, On the uncompleted Petroleum Institute in Kaduna, the minister said that the Ministry had created a Skill Learning Department to coordinate staff training and the running of its specialised centres in Warri, Lagos and Kaduna.
Kachukwu said that the department would provide research and training skills needed for effective refining and other services in the oil sector.
He said the Kaduna Institute was programmed to provide skills to HND graduates in refining and solar energy to prepare them for hiring in the oil industry.
On oil exploration in Northern Nigeria, the minister said that the government had invited
investors to explore for oil in the region.
I am one of those who believe that with modern technology, oil and gas exist in every part of Nigeria’’.
According to him, research conducted in the last six months revealed that there is both oil and gas in the North.
We are putting a lot of investment and we are inviting people to invest money. We have set up a department which is doing three things for the North.“
“First, we are going bullishly and trying to find oil and it is in our own interest, especially given the problems we find with pipelines.
“We are focusing on clean energy, Solar; we should be able to provide sufficient solar
energy in the Northern part of this country.
We are putting a concept of partnership in oil. Every system has a relationship with oil in different perspectives.

The programme is building 700 marketing outlets all over the country with one per local
government, we are asking the state government to co-venture with us and give
land to do this,” he said.