Nigeria, Sept. 11 -- Nigeria, Africa's largest oil producer, has announced a 5 per cent tax on all fossil fuel sales as part of its new tax law that goes into effect in January 2026. According to this new tax regulation, Nigerians are now expected to pay a "5% surcharge that is chargeable on fossil fuel products provided or produced in Nigeria" - a fee which, according to the stipulation of the act, "shall be collected at the time of a chargeable transaction, meaning at the point of sale." This surcharge excludes clean or renewable energy products, household kerosene, cooking gas, and compressed natural gas (CNG).

The framing and wording of this law make it an effort to put a price incentive on fossil fuel consumption, to shift consumpti...