₦airaland Forum

By Bunmi Aduloju


On September 23, Aliko Dangote, the founder of Dangote Petroleum Refinery, said petrol is about 40 percent cheaper in Nigeria than in Saudi Arabia.

Dangote spoke during an interview with Bloomberg TV.

Speaking about the subsidy situation in Nigeria, the billionaire entrepreneur said it is the right time to stop the payments.

“For example, in Saudi, the citizens believe that oil is our God-given gift and should not charge us for it. Government was selling it at a very low price,” he said.

“But today, as we speak, gasoline is about 40 percent cheaper in Nigeria than in Saudi Arabia, which I think does not make sense.”


VERIFICATION

Data from Saudi Aramco, the Saudi Arabian oil group, showed that for September, the price of octane 95 petrol is 2.33 riyals per litre while octane 91 petrol is 2.18 riyals in the country.

According to the company, the octane number is related to the engine’s compression ratio, which indicates the fuel’s anti-knock ratio and establishes the maximum compression the petrol can withstand before igniting.

As of September 25, the Central Bank of Saudi Arabia said the exchange rate for N1 is 0.002280 riyal, which means 1 riyal exchanged for N438.5.

Consequently, the price of octane 95 petrol in naira is N1,021.92 per litre while that of octane 91 petrol is N956.14 riyals.

On the other hand, on September 3, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited increased the petrol price across its retail outlets to N855 per litre.

After converting the riyal value to naira, the naira denomination was used to determine the difference between petrol prices in both countries.

As a result, Saudi Arabia’s petrol is 17.78 percent (for octane 95 petrol) and 11.16 percent (for octane 91 petrol), respectively, more expensive than that of Nigeria.

Moreover, converting the petrol prices of both countries to dollars would lead to a similar result which is way less than the 40 percent Dangote claimed.


VERDICT

Verdict: Partly false.

The claim that petrol costs 40 percent less in Nigeria than in Saudi Arabia is an exaggeration.

While Saudi Arabia’s fuel prices are indeed higher, the actual difference is not 40 percent as claimed. Data reveals a significantly smaller price gap between the two countries.

ClearFlair:
Does it even matter. Compare minimum wage first

ivandragon:
Hmm...

Most of these analysis that requires conversion from one currency to the other are often misleading and negate what truly matters, which is the purchasing power of the common man, primarily, the least paid workers.

A straightforward analogy which makes more sense is how much fuel can be bought with the minimum wage?

The average minimum monthly wage in Saudi Arabia is about 4000 SAR. PMS averages at about 2.3 SAR per litre. So 4000 SAR gets you about 1700 litres of PMS.

In nigeria, with minimum wage at N70000 and pms averaging N1000 per litre, your minimum wage gets you 70 litres of pms.

Case closed. Any other calculations or conversions are just exercises in futility because the purchasing power of the masses in any country is what matters most.

Shadomaan7:
The price of petrol in Nigeria is now lower than in Saudi Arabia. That one na confirmed news

ivandragon:
Hmm...

Most of these analysis that requires conversion from one currency to the other are often misleading and negate what truly matters, which is the purchasing power of the common man, primarily, the least paid workers.

A straightforward analogy which makes more sense is how much fuel can be bought with the minimum wage?

The average minimum monthly wage in Saudi Arabia is about 4000 SAR. PMS averages at about 2.3 SAR per litre. So 4000 SAR gets you about 1700 litres of PMS.

In nigeria, with minimum wage at N70000 and pms averaging N1000 per litre, your minimum wage gets you 70 litres of pms.

Case closed. Any other calculations or conversions are just exercises in futility because the purchasing power of the masses in any country is what matters most.

Islie:
■ FACT CHECK: Is petrol 40% cheaper in Nigeria than in Saudi Arabia as claimed by Dangote?

Shadomaan7:
■ The price of petrol in Nigeria is now lower than in Saudi Arabia. That one na confirmed news