TotalErnergies Marketing Nigeria Plc fell off the cliff as the downstream player recorded its first net loss since 2020 during the coronavirus pandemic.
For the first three months through March 2025, TotalEnergies posted a loss after tax of N120.02 million from a profit of N11.49 billion as at March 2024.
Revenue was down 18.49 percent to N221.62 billion in March 2025 from N269.83 billion as at March 2024.
Deteriorating profit margins or poor performance is caused by a reduction in revenue from sale of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), Automotive Gasoline Oil (AGO) and Aviation Turbine Kerosene (ATK), otherwise known as White Product.
Analysts interviewed by MoneyCentral unanimously agreed that the hike in the price of fuel is a double edged sword as aside from strengthening earnings in the short run it has led to a sharp slowdown in demand.
Many car owners have parked their cars in the garage while some have reduced the number of cars they fuel due to higher prices at the pump.
There is light at the end of the tunnel for sector players as an imminent crash in the price of fuel is expected to lift demand.
It is said that the price of the product which is N860 per liter could fall to N500.
According to Saturday Sun, Industry experts have attributed the potential price reduction to several factors, including the Federal Government’s deregulation policy, a stable foreign exchange system, increased local refining capacity, and the implementation of the naira-for-crude policy.
“With the new refineries coming on stream, the days of monopoly are over. By 2025, we are confident that petrol prices will drop below N500 per litre,” said Ukadike Chinedu, Publicity Secretary of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN).
