The Nigerian Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers has raised concerns over irregular supply and the rising cost of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (cooking gas), warning that the trend could lead to scarcity and worsen economic pressure on consumers.

The association said the price of cooking gas has climbed above N1,500 per kilogramme, while marketers now purchase 20 metric tonnes for between N25.2 million and N26.2 million, depending on location.

It added that many retail outlets currently sell the product for between N1,600 and N2,000.

In a statement jointly signed by the National President of NALPGAM, Edu Inyang, and the Executive Secretary, Mr Bassey Essien, the association described the situation as “sad and rather very pathetic.”

“The citizens of Nigeria have woken up to buy cooking gas, which should be a social item, at a prohibitive cost of over N1,500 per kg, while the marketers are made to pay as much as N25,200,000 or, depending on the location, N26,200,000 for 20 metric tonnes of cooking gas.

“We feel that if the situation is not immediately checked, the citizens may rise against the owners of gas filling stations,” the marketers stated.

They said the situation has caused severe hardship for millions of Nigerian households, small businesses, food vendors, and low-income families who depend on LPG for daily cooking and their means of livelihood.

According to the association, the development is “seriously eroding the substantial progress made by the government” in promoting the use of clean energy across the country. It added that its members nationwide are struggling to access LPG due to persistent supply shortages, high depot prices, logistics challenges, and escalating operational costs.

“We observe that where product is available, it is sold at rates far beyond the reach of average Nigerians,” the association noted.

NALPGAM warned that the crisis is undermining years of progress made through Federal Government policies and investments designed to expand LPG adoption and promote clean cooking energy across the country.

“While millions of Nigerians have embraced cooking gas as a result of the national clean energy transition agenda, it is sad to state that those gains are at risk as households are struggling to refill cylinders, small businesses are folding under rising energy costs, while many families are reverting to firewood and charcoal despite the serious implications for public health, environmental degradation, and deforestation,” it said.

The association further warned that if the crisis is not urgently addressed, it could result in “accelerated food inflation, the collapse of small-scale LPG retail businesses, job losses, reduced investor confidence, and a significant setback to Nigeria’s clean energy and climate commitments.”

NALPGAM called on the Federal Government, the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, domestic producers, terminal operators, international suppliers, and other stakeholders to take urgent, coordinated action to stabilise the market before it worsens further.

The association also urged immediate steps to improve the availability and accessibility of LPG across the country.

It called for increased domestic allocation of LPG to the Nigerian market, transparent distribution of available supplies, the removal of bottlenecks in importation and distribution, and targeted interventions to stabilise retail prices.