The federal government on Thursday announced that it had reviewed upwards the freight rate paid to petroleum products transporters under the Nigerian Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO).
The development is coming after transporters complained about the rising cost of operations nationwide, threatening earlier in the year to down tools if the issues were not resolved.
In March, the authorities had hiked the rate from N9.5 per litre to N11.87/litre, but it was gathered that in the extant development, an increase of N10 per kilometre across board for the transporters was agreed upon.
Although the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) provides for a free, market-driven arrangement in the sector, however the industry is still highly regulated by the government, with prices of petrol especially still determined at the whims of government.
A statement by the Nigerian Midstream Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), the police of that segment of the sector disclosing the development, noted that the new deal was a result of several consultations with industry stakeholders.
According to the Authority, President Muhammadu Buhari considered and approved the upward review in freight rate for transporters to alleviate the challenges associated with the distribution of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) or petrol.
