Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Femi Falana, has said Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL)’s action to fix imported and locally refined fuel prices is illegal and void.

Naija News reports that Falana, in a statement on Thursday, referred to remarks made on September 5, 2024, by the Executive Vice President of Downstream NNPC Ltd, Adedapo Segun, who explained that under Section 205 of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), NNPC Limited is established to operate in a deregulated market where free market forces determine petroleum prices.

Segun had said, “The market has been deregulated, meaning that petrol prices are now determined by market forces rather than by the government or NNPC Ltd. Additionally, the exchange rate plays a significant role in influencing these prices.”

However, Falana objected to the comment, stating that NNPCL has no legal authority to set the petrol price in Nigeria.

The human rights lawyer pointed out that despite Segun’s claim, NNPCL set the fuel price refined by Dangote Refinery and Petrochemical Company Limited last month without allowing market forces to dictate the pricing.

Falana noted that on Wednesday, October 9, 2024, NNPCL again bypassed the mechanism of market forces in determining the cost by announcing new pump prices for fuel refined by the Dangote Refinery.

According to Falana, NNPCL actions violate Section 205 of the Petroleum Industry Act, which mandates that market dynamics determine the prices of petroleum products.