Nigerian airline operators will meet with the federal government on Wednesday after they temporarily suspended a planned nationwide shutdown of flight operations over crippling jet fuel prices.
The halt in the planned strike came after the federal government appealed to the airliners, pending the talks scheduled for tomorrow.
The Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON), which is an industry body composed of a dozen mainly domestic carriers, had earlier threatened to halt services from Monday, April 20, saying surging jet fuel costs had made operations unsustainable.
AON said it agreed to pause the action following an appeal from the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Mr Festus Keyamo, who called for restraint and dialogue.
“Rising from an emergency meeting held this evening, the Airline Operators of Nigeria has reached a concessionary but conditional decision to temporarily suspend its earlier planned shutdown action,” AON said in a statement.
The body said the suspension was conditional pending the outcome of a meeting for all concerned parties scheduled for Wednesday, April 22, convened by the minister.
As part of their conditions, the airlines urged government agencies and service providers to keep services running and to stop demanding upfront payments, which they said were adding to their financial strain.
The US-Israel war on Iran has led to rising jet fuel prices, which have equally affected the global aviation industry. The development has forced airlines to raise fares and curb growth plans.
At the centre of the crisis is the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint through which roughly one-fifth of global oil supply flows. With shipping constrained, the effects are cascading across the global economy, raising fuel costs, fueling inflation, and increasing the risk of economic slowdown across many economies.
Nigerian airlines say the jet fuel price surge has been worsened by supply constraints and foreign exchange pressures, significantly increasing operating costs.
Last week, the organisation said it wrote to the Major Energies Marketers Association of Nigeria (MEMAN) on April 14, complaining that jet fuel prices had risen by about 270 per cent since late February, and accused the country’s fuel marketers of artificially inflating the cost.
Oil prices have dropped below $100 after surging above $115 per barrel as markets react to escalating tensions and the risk of prolonged disruption.
AON called the jet fuel increase in Nigeria “astronomical and artificial,” saying it far outpaced global crude oil prices.
