The Group Managing Director of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mele Kyari, has stated that Nigerians are meant to be paying at least N256 per litre for petrol.

All Facts News reports that the NNPC GMD stated this at a stakeholders meeting organised by the NNPC to stop fuel smuggling.

The NNPC GMD disclosed that the federal government is injecting between N140 billion to N150bn monthly to keep petrol price at N162 per litre, from its actual N256.

“If we are to sell at the market today at the current exchange rate, we will be selling the product at about N256 to a litre. What we sell today is N162, so the difference is at a cost to the nation,’’ he said.

He however said with the high volume of daily consumption, the country cannot sustain subsidy payment.

“As long as we don’t regulate volume until we are able to exit this current level, which I know so much work is going on, then we have to manage the volume that we are exposed to between this price of N162 and N256. The difference comes back to as much as N140 billion to N150 billion cost to the country monthly.

“As long as the volume goes up, that money continues to increase, and we have two sets of stress to face: the stress of supply and stress of foreign exchange for the NNPC. We may not see foreign exchange cheque taking place for importation.,” Kyari said.