LAGOS, July 23 – The Dangote Petroleum Refinery & Petrochemicals FZE has resumed the sale of petroleum products in naira, reversing its temporary shift to US dollar-denominated pricing just one week after introducing the new payment structure.
The refinery also increased the gantry price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), commonly known as petrol, to N1,215 per litre, up from the previous N1,075 per litre, representing an increase of N140 per litre, or approximately 13.02%.
The revised pricing was announced in a statement issued by the Lagos-based refinery on Thursday.
The development follows the refinery’s decision to suspend gantry and coastal loading operations on July 15 after introducing a dollar-based pricing template for refined petroleum products.
Checks conducted by African Economy Inc. indicate that the refinery’s new ex-depot price remains below prevailing prices for imported petroleum products.
Industry sources confirmed that customers had been notified of the resumption of gantry operations, with truck loading expected to commence immediately under the revised naira pricing structure.
The temporary suspension of product loading last week significantly tightened fuel supply across Nigeria, driving prices sharply higher at private depots.
Market data monitored by African Economy Inc. showed that the average ex-depot price in Lagos increased from around N1,075 per litre before the suspension to approximately N1,275 per litre, an increase of nearly N200 per litre, or 18.6%, as marketers adjusted to higher replacement costs.
African Economy Inc. had earlier reported that the refinery’s temporary adoption of dollar pricing was linked to challenges in securing sufficient crude oil under the Federal Government’s naira-for-crude supply arrangement.
During the brief period of dollar-denominated sales, petrol was priced at $0.779 per litre, while Automotive Gas Oil (diesel) sold for $1.087 per litre and Jet A1 aviation fuel was priced at $0.942 per litre.
The resumption of naira transactions was welcomed by petroleum marketers.
Speaking with Daily Trust, President of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Alhaji Abubakar Maigandi, welcomed the development, saying, “We are very happy with this development and I want to assure you that our members would resume loading immediately. This will further improve inland distribution after days of constrained availability.”
The refinery’s decision is expected to improve fuel availability across the country and reduce supply pressures that emerged following last week’s suspension of loading operations, although the higher ex-depot price may continue to influence retail fuel prices in the near term.
