The Federal Government has taken action to lower the price of cooking gas, often known as liquefied petroleum gas, or LPG, as part of an effort to address issues with the product’s supply and cost.

Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas) Ekperikpe Ekpo stated that he became involved in the matter after the price of LPG per kilogram increased in certain regions of the nation, from roughly N700 to over N1,100.

According to a statement issued by the Spokesman to the Minister, Louis Ibah, the meeting which was recently held at the instance of the minister at the NNPC Towers Abuja, had in attendance top officials of Chevron Nigeria Limited led by Sansay Narasimi; Nigerian Midstream Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) led by its Chief Executive Officer, Farouk Ahmed and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited.

Some of the key challenges identified as responsible for LPG price increase include sourcing of forex for imports and insufficient supply to the domestic market by producers.

Ekpo expressed the concerns of President Bola Tinubu over the astronomical increase in the price of cooking gas and the attendant hardship on the majority of citizens.

The minister who noted that Nigeria is abundantly endowed with gas reserves, said the situation where some of the multinational firms were more concerned with gas exports without dedicating huge volumes to the domestic market was unacceptable and should be discouraged.

He stressed the need for Federal Government intervention due to the exponential surge in LPG prices and the challenges of importation and exportation. A committee was subsequently established by the minister with a mandate to deliver recommendations within a week on how to enhance supplies and reduce LPG prices.

He said, “With the exponential increase in the price of LPG, there is the need for the Federal Government to intervene and I am representing this at this moment.’’