5 September, 2011, Sweetcrude, Lagos – Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) has expressed dismay at the recent increase in the price of Low Pour Fuel Oil (LPFO) in the country. According to chairman, MAN, Apapa Branch, Mr. John Aluya, the increase in the price of the product, used mainly by heavy manufacturers in Nigeria, will lead to increase in the price of products, especially cement, which cost the Federal Government is making efforts to crash.
“You should not increase LPFO price since we do not have a reliable source of power supply in the country. It is like the government is speaking with two mouths. It wants to crash down the price of cement today and tomorrow the same government increases the price of LPFO,” said Aluya at the bi-monthly meeting of the branch.
He noted that the manufacturing sector is key to economic growth and that until Nigeria develops its real sector, the economy will not blossom.
He added that the real sector did not benefit from the CBN’s intervention fund and said that the fund was to clean the books of the banks and not to assist manufacturers. “We need a fund that will benefit the manufacturers in the country to enable them compete with their counterparts,” he said.
He added: “It is our prayer that the Federal Government will attain its targeted power of generation of 10,000 Megawatt in 2012 and over 30,000 Megawatt in 2020 so that manufacturers can relatively make projections given the attainment of the power generations listed.”
Aluya pointed to the urgent need to break the monopoly of Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN) and its subsidiaries by allowing private into the sector and with enabling laws that will regulate their services and assure return on investments.
