Nigerian Airline operators have called on the federal government to grant them an operational license to enable them begin the importation of fuel, following the recent fuel scarcity across the country.
Speaking on Monday, the Chairman of Airpeace, Allen Onyema warned that Airlines in the country would shut down operations over the non-availability of Aviation fuel to run their operations.
‘We have only three more days, all airlines in Nigeria will shut down. We are not threatening this country, it is a fact’, Onyema said.
The Airpeace boss on Monday held spoke at a meeting of oil marketers and Airline operators at the National Assembly.
He pointed out that something drastic has to be done quickly to save the country.
In attendance at the meeting were the NNPC CEO, Mele Kyari and other stakeholders.
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‘I have the mandate of all airlines to demand that Airlines begin importation of fuel, if we can buy planes of millions of dollars, we can also import fuel ourselves. Let NNPC give Airlines licenses, we want to import ourselves’, Onyema insisted.
Africa Daily News, New York reports that just as the airline industry showed signs of improvement, the current Russia-Ukraine crisis has added another layer of complexity to the path of recovery. Oil prices were already high, but the present conflict has made the situation even worse.
Given the fact than an airline’s profitability depends directly on how low it keeps its operational costs. While most of the costs are somewhat manageable, one that influences the balance sheet the most is fuel.
With countries banning oil imports from Russia, airlines are worried about what it might do to oil prices. Indeed, the volatility in oil prices is already visible and the Nigerian economy is already feeling the impact.
AFRICA DAILY NEWS, NEW YORK
