Nigeria may witness a fresh surge in airfares as mounting pressure from rising aviation fuel costs pushes domestic airlines to the brink of operational shutdown, the Federal Government has warned.
The Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, disclosed this on Thursday in Lagos after a marathon closed-door meeting with industry stakeholders, hinting that ticket prices may increase within the next seven days to keep airlines afloat.
According to the minister, operators can no longer sustain current pricing structures amid escalating costs, particularly for Jet A1 fuel, which powers aircraft.
“Airlines cannot continue to operate for the next seven days without raising prices, so let that be clear to the public; they have been stretched to their limit,” Keyamo said.
He added that within the next 48 to 72 hours, stakeholders would work towards establishing fair pricing for Jet A1 fuel, amid concerns over possible exploitation by marketers.
The intervention, he noted, is aimed at protecting both operators and passengers while stabilising the sector.
The warning comes against the backdrop of growing tension between airline operators and fuel marketers over the sharp increase in aviation fuel prices.
Speaking for operators, Chief Executive Officer of Air Peace Limited, Allen Onyema, said airlines may be forced to suspend operations entirely if urgent action is not taken.
“The minister called for a meeting for us to meet with the marketers face-to-face. We have deliberated extensively today; they have also shared their pain point, and we have also shared our own,” Onyema said.
“We are all going to go back to wait for the outcome of their own deliberations with their regulators, and we expect that in the next 48 hours something drastic is done because no airline in this country will fly in the next seven days if something is not done not because they don’t want to fly, but because of the pricing, ” he added.
Industry figures show that the cost of Jet A1 fuel has surged dramatically in recent months, rising from about N900 per litre in late February to as high as N3,300 per litre, representing a more than 300 per cent increase.
The Airline Operators of Nigeria had earlier warned that the spike could trigger widespread service disruptions if not urgently addressed.
However, fuel suppliers under the Major Energies Marketers Association of Nigeria have rejected claims of exploitation, insisting that pricing reflects prevailing market realities.
They cited global crude oil fluctuations, foreign exchange constraints and logistics costs as key drivers of the increase.
“There is no deliberate attempt to exploit airlines,” the marketers maintained, noting that supply chain pressures have significantly impacted pricing.
In response to the crisis, the Federal Government convened the high-level meeting to find common ground among stakeholders, with a focus on ensuring fair pricing, maintaining supply stability and preventing a shutdown of domestic flight operations.
With negotiations ongoing, passengers across the country now face the likelihood of higher ticket prices in the coming days, as the aviation sector struggles to navigate one of its most severe cost pressures in recent times.
