Petrol Prices Surge as Dangote Refinery Hikes Ex-Depot Rates

By Miracle Ogunde

The retail price of Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) has risen to between N1,030 and N1,150 per litre, following an increase in ex-depot prices announced by Dangote Refinery.

The refinery confirmed the price adjustment in an email to customers on Friday, raising the ex-depot price from N899 per litre to N955 per litre, Daily Post reports.

Marketers purchasing between two million and 4.99 million litres will now pay N955 per litre, while those buying five million litres or more will pay N950 per litre.

This marks a N55 or 6.17 percent increase from the N899.50 per litre introduced as a holiday discount last December. The adjustment has triggered varying degrees of retail price hikes at petrol stations nationwide.

Chinedu Ukadike, spokesperson for the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), confirmed that petrol prices might exceed N1,100 per litre at member stations across the country.

“Commuters will likely pay over N1,150 per litre at faraway locations, while locations close to the depot will pay N1,100. This is because we will add about N50 logistics costs. Currently, ex-depot prices have increased to N980.

“This change is immediate because crude oil price increase, too, is immediate,” he stated.

Billy Gillis-Harry, president of the Petroleum Products Retail Outlet Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN), said while it is premature to predict the exact retail price after Dangote Refinery’s price hike, higher costs are inevitable.

“Because right now, we still have an obligation with the MRS to be selling at N935, and some of us bought products there.

“So, if they change their prices because of the Dangote price, then the conversation will be different.

“After the price of buying, there must be the price of logistics. Once that is computed, we can then look at what is the most humane profit margin,” he said.

In the federal capital territory, Abuja, some filling stations have already implemented at least a N50 increase in their petrol prices.

Meanwhile, outlets operated by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) continue to sell petrol at N965 per litre as of Friday evening.

This development follows an earlier adjustment by depot owners, who increased their petrol prices on Thursday.