The government, however, said it would continue to intervene in determining the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit, PMS, also known as petrol, to safeguard consumers of the commodity from being exploited by oil marketers.

Sylva disclosed that the decision of the government to continue to intervene in fixing fuel price was a result of the ugly experiences the government was having with oil marketers who have deliberately refused to bring down the cost of diesel and other petroleum products whose landing costs had reduced.

No impact of fuel price reduction on food prices, others

He bemoaned the fact that the reduction in the price of PMS had not impacted prices of food items and, transportation costs among others, while he called on Nigerians to hold market players accountable when the price of PMS begins to rise again.

Sylva further stated that the Federal Government was kick-starting the Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) penetration policy, June ending, hopefully, after the COVID-19 pandemic forced it to postpone the commencement twice, in April and May 2020.

Sylva further stated that the petroleum ministry had gotten approval from the Presidency for the award of marginal oilfields, which would certainly be conducted this year; while he noted that on passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) the Federal Government would conduct a major oil bid rounds, especially after issues surrounding the fiscals and other issues had been addressed.