Dangote fuel price hike sparks fresh concerns over petrol affordability in Nigeria

Dangote Refinery raises ex-depot petrol price to N880 per litre, intensifying fears over affordability despite falling global crude oil prices

[dropcap]D[/dropcap]angote fuel price hike has sent shockwaves through Nigeria’s downstream oil sector, after the refinery raised its ex-depot price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) to N880 per litre on Friday.

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This represents a N55 increase from its previous rate of N825, and the development is likely to trigger pump prices exceeding N900 per litre in some regions.

The refinery’s latest price adjustment, invoice and daily tracking on petroleumprice.ng, arrives amid declining global crude oil benchmarks.

Brent fell by 3.02% to $76.47 per barrel, WTI dropped to $74.93, and Murban traded at $76.97 on Friday. Yet, the domestic market has found little relief, largely due to the refinery’s rising reliance on imported United States crude and volatile exchange rates.

Aliko Dangote, President of Dangote Group, acknowledged on Thursday that the 650,000-barrel capacity facility now increasingly depends on American crude to meet its production targets.

The refinery has imported 3.65 million barrels in the past two months and plans to import a total of 17.65 million barrels by the end of July 2025.

This strategy, influenced by limited local crude availability and complications around the Federal Government’s naira-for-crude policy, adds to operational costs and pricing pressure.

Dangote made these disclosures during a meeting with the Technical Committee of the One-Stop Shop initiative.

The decision to hike prices is already rippling across the supply chain. Many depot owners and distributors, particularly in Lagos and other urban centres, had stalled fresh pricing decisions since Tuesday when the refinery paused new sales and withheld Pro Forma Invoices. The result was speculative pricing and arbitrary mark-ups across several depots.

The president of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), Festus Osifo, responded sharply to the development.

He accused marketers of exploiting consumers, stating that given the current global crude prices, petrol should be retailing at no more than N750 per litre.

“If you go online and check the PLAT cost per cubic metre of PMS, convert that to litres and then to our Naira, you will see that with crude at around $60 per barrel, petrol should be retailing between N700 and N750 per litre,” Osifo explained.

“If Nigerians bear the brunt of higher fuel costs, they should be allowed to enjoy the benefit of low pricing.”

His warning has proven prescient. Industry insiders now brace for a surge in retail prices in the coming days, even as concerns mount over the sustainability of deregulation in the face of forex challenges, infrastructural constraints, and unstable domestic supply.

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The development is expected to reignite national debates about fuel pricing, subsidy management, and the role of private refineries in stabilising Nigeria’s energy landscape.