The Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria is pressing for structural reform of the downstream petroleum sector, arguing that a more open market would shield Nigerian consumers from the price volatility created by the ongoing Middle East crisis.
Appearing on Channels Television's The Morning Brief programme on Tuesday, PETROAN National President Billy Gillis-Harry said other licensed players must be allowed to resume PMS imports without further delay. The tension in the Middle East has already pushed domestic petrol prices above N1,200 per litre, compounding pressure on households and businesses already grappling with elevated input costs.
World Bank Echoes Competition Concerns
Gillis-Harry's intervention aligns with an independent assessment from the World Bank, which published its April 2026 Nigeria Development Update earlier this year with a sharp focus on supply-side constraints in the petroleum sector. The multilateral lender identified restricted competition in downstream petroleum and trade barriers on critical imports as primary drivers of cost escalation across the Nigerian economy.
The report recommended reinstating petrol import licences to re-establish competitive pressure in the PMS market, where pricing has intensified following the suspension of import permits earlier in the year. According to the World Bank analysis, the absence of competitive supply has pushed domestic petrol prices above import parity levels, effectively leaving consumers to absorb a premium that market competition would otherwise erode.
The convergence of the World Bank's policy prescription and PETROAN's public lobbying signals growing consensus that Nigeria's downstream architecture requires recalibration if price stability is to be achieved without permanently expanding the import bill.