By Dianabasi Effiong
The management of Ibom Airlines has given an update on the aviation fuel crisis on its operations, saying the state-owned company expended approximately N7.6 million to fuel every flight.
The update was made known in a statement by Aniekan Essienette, the Group Manager, Marketing and Communication
Ibom Airlines Limited, on Monday in Uyo.
According to him, the fuel price situation is an unprecedented crisis for Nigeria’s domestic airlines.
He added that at Ibom Air, the cost of fueling its aircraft had “more than tripled between January and today.”
He stated, “From an average of N2.1m per flight in January, as at today, the 27th of April, we are paying approximately N7.6m to fuel every flight.”
He said that the increase was “more than 350 per cent since the beginning of March, a space of just 7 weeks!”
He also stated that Ibom Airlines’ aircraft were some of the most fuel-efficient in Nigeria’s domestic market.
“At this point, domestic airlines are baffled at why the price of aviation fuel in Nigeria has ballooned to this level, way above the rest of the world, while the fuel marketers obtain 95% or more of their aviation fuel from Dangote Refinery.
“The situation is exacerbated by the fact that a combination of competitive pressures and patriotism has prevented a commensurate increase in our fares, meaning that we and our fellow domestic airlines have had to absorb the immense operating losses resulting from this situation.
“We chose to do this believing that the crisis would pass in a week or two, but it has persisted now for nearly two months, continuously increasing, with no reprieve in sight as of today,” Essienette said.
He said that it would be difficult for Ibom Air to operate just to pay for fuel and nothing else.
He said that Ibom Air would take whatever ameliorating actions in the days ahead, including reducing its capacity, if necessary, to continue to provide services to customers and Nigeria.
“While we continue to do everything we can to maintain normal operations, it is clear to us that the current conditions are unsustainable.
“We note that, worldwide, where fuel price increases are nowhere near what we are facing in Nigeria, airlines are reducing flights to manage the situation.
“We, too, will have to take whatever ameliorating actions we can in the days ahead, including reducing our capacity if necessary, to be able to continue to provide services to our customers and our country.
“We also note that, if this situation persists much longer, airlines will not be able to continue operating just to pay for fuel and nothing else,” he said
Essienette also called on marketers to seriously reconsider the pricing of aviation fuel to make the airline business model continue to work in Nigeria.
