By Sodeinde Temidayo David
The average price of a litre of Automotive Gas Oil (AGO), otherwise known as diesel increased by 0.17 per cent in Nigeria to N254.64 in September 2021 from N254.21 in August 2021.
This was revealed by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in its latest report analysed by Business Post.
On a year-on-year basis, the average price of diesel rose by 15.91 per cent from N219.68/litre it was sold in September last year.
According to the report, consumers in Borno State bought diesel at the highest average price of N289.00 per litre and were followed by Abuja residents, who paid N280.00 to buy a litre of the product.
Also, consumers in Cross River and Kogi States bought a litre of diesel at N273.75, while the lowest cost was paid by those living in Kebbi, Katsina and Zamfara States at N230.00, N225.00 and N216.25 per litre respectively.
In terms of region, in the North-East, diesel was sold at high in Borno and the lowest in Yobe at N233.75 per litre, while in the North-West, the cheapest was in Zamfara and the highest in Kaduna at N257.00 for a litre.
In the North-Central, Abuja sold for the highest price, but cheapest in Benue at N239.06, while in the South-South region, the highest average price was recorded in Cross River at N273.75 and the lowest in Bayelsa State at N241.07.
According to the statistics, in the South-West, it was highest at N267.56 in Oyo State and cheapest in Lagos State at N247.65, while in the South-East, it was highest in Ebonyi State at N273.33 and lowest in Imo at N255.33.
The price of diesel is subjected to the cost of importing the fuel into the country which follows the rise in global oil prices and the depreciation of the local currency.
The price of diesel, which is not regulated by the government, has surged by over 14 per cent as the NBS had recorded an average price of N224.86 per litre in the first month of 2021.
Dipo Olowookere 
Adedapo Adesanya