Cooking gas prices in Nigeria have climbed to around N2,500 per kilogram, putting pressure on households and undermining the country's efforts to shift away from firewood and charcoal toward cleaner fuels.
The sustained high prices reflect structural problems in Nigeria's gas supply chain, even as the government has promoted liquefied petroleum gas as an alternative to biomass cooking. For millions of Nigerians already struggling with inflation and unemployment, the cost of gas has become a luxury they cannot afford.
Energy analysts say the price spike stems from multiple factors: crude oil volatility, weak local production capacity, import dependency, and logistical constraints that push up the final cost to consumers. Refineries working below capacity mean less domestic gas supply, forcing Nigeria to rely on imports that come with foreign exchange risks and shipping costs.
The irony is sharp. Nigeria sits on vast gas reserves, yet ordinary citizens pay some of the highest cooking gas prices in Africa. Government subsidies on petrol mask the real cost of fuel, but cooking gas remains largely deregulated, exposed to market forces that have pushed prices beyond the reach of poor and middle-class families.
Many households have returned to burning firewood and charcoal as prices climbed. Environmental groups warn this reversal undermines Nigeria's climate commitments and worsens indoor air pollution, which kills thousands yearly, particularly women and children who spend more time cooking over open fires. The World Health Organisation has flagged Nigeria among countries with the worst air quality from household cooking emissions.
The government's clean cooking initiative, which aimed to get 100 million Nigerians onto gas by 2030, now faces an uphill battle. Without price stability or subsidies, the target looks unrealistic. Policy makers at the Ministry of Petroleum and the NNPC will need to tackle refinery output urgently and perhaps introduce targeted support for low-income households if the clean energy agenda is to survive.
Expectations are that cooking gas prices will remain volatile until Nigeria fixes its refining capacity and reduces import reliance, a process that could take years.
