Foreign airlines flying toNigeria have started to refuel abroad to bypass pricey, andincreasingly scarce, jet fuel as the oil producer battles a hardcurrency shortage that has made fuel available only at a veryhigh price.

It is the second blow for airlines operating in Africa’srecession-hit biggest economy in a year that first saw thecentral bank make it almost impossible to repatriate profitsfrom ticket sales as it tried to prevent a currency collapse. The crash in the naira since a devaluation in June has ledfirms who market jet fuel locally, such as Total, Sahara andConocoPhillips, to double the price to 220 naira a litre inAugust, and to as much as 400 naira this month, an airlineexecutive said.

Even at the higher costs, marketers’ lack of dollars hasmade fuel scarce. Some carriers have had aircraft stuck, or wereforced to cancel planned journeys, after frantic last-minutecalls from ground staff warned there was no fuel available.

“The economy is crying out for investment, and now it isgoing to be even harder for anyone to visit,” said JohnAshbourne, economist with Capital Economics. “Who is going towant to park a billion dollars in a country that you can’t eveneasily fly to? It sends the worst possible signal.”

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