The Dangote Petroleum Refinery has increased its ex-depot price for Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), also known as petrol, from ₦825 to ₦880 per litre as of Friday, June 20, 2025. This ₦55 hike is expected to trigger another round of price increases at filling stations nationwide.
Real-time data from petroleumprice.ng, a fuel rate tracking platform, and a Pro Forma Invoice sighted by The PUNCH confirmed the updated pricing from the 650,000-barrel-per-day facility located in Lagos.
Marketers and Consumers Brace for Impact
Industry stakeholders warn that the price adjustment will ripple through the downstream sector, potentially pushing pump prices well above ₦900 per litre, particularly in inland states and rural areas far from coastal depots.
Despite a recent dip in global crude oil prices Brent fell by 3.02% to $76.47 per barrel, WTI declined to $74.93, and Murban dropped to $76.97 the refinery attributes the increase to rising operational expenses and persistent volatility in the naira-dollar exchange rate.
Speaking on Thursday, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, President of the Dangote Group, revealed that his refinery is now increasingly sourcing crude oil from international suppliers, particularly the United States, due to an ongoing shortage of domestic crude from Nigerian producers.
Crude Imports Replacing Local Supply
Internal documents show that the refinery has scheduled the importation of 17.65 million barrels of crude between April and July 2025. Of this figure, 3.65 million barrels have already been delivered over the last eight weeks. Sources close to the matter said these shipments are part of the Nigerian government’s naira-for-crude initiative, designed to support local refining capacity while managing forex constraints.
Aliko Dangote made these disclosures during a briefing with members of the Technical Committee overseeing the One-Stop Shop for Crude and Refined Products in Naira, a government-backed effort to prioritize local refining in naira rather than foreign currencies. He admitted that Nigeria's inability to consistently meet domestic crude supply obligations has forced the refinery to increase its reliance on imported crude.
Labour Unions Decry Marketers’ Pricing Practices
Meanwhile, labour groups have sharply criticized oil marketers for keeping petrol prices artificially high, even when global oil trends would support lower rates at the pump.
Speaking earlier this week, Festus Osifo, President of the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), accused fuel marketers of exploiting Nigerians under the guise of deregulation.
“If you calculate the cost of PMS based on current PLAT pricing and crude benchmarks around $60 per barrel, adjusted to naira, petrol should not exceed ₦700 to ₦750 per litre,” Osifo argued. “When oil prices go up, Nigerians suffer. When they go down, we should at least see relief.”
His warning now appears prophetic, as depot operators and independent marketers are already adjusting their pricing models to reflect the Dangote Refinery’s revised rate.
Sales Suspension and Speculation
Multiple sources confirmed that the refinery temporarily suspended sales earlier in the week and withheld fresh Pro Forma Invoices to marketers, leading to uncertainty and speculative pricing across major petroleum depots.
During this brief window, some marketers reportedly took advantage of the market disruption to apply arbitrary markups, creating temporary fuel shortages and queues in parts of Lagos, Ogun, and Abuja.
As the new pricing regime takes effect, the public is bracing for the impact on transportation, food costs, and general living expenses, as petrol remains central to Nigeria's economic activities.
What Lies Ahead?
The price hike underscores the fragility of Nigeria’s downstream sector, where a complex mix of forex instability, crude supply gaps, logistics costs, and opaque pricing mechanisms continues to make fuel pricing unpredictable even in a supposedly deregulated market.
While Dangote Refinery remains the country's biggest hope for fuel independence, its growing dependence on imported crude and the broader challenges within Nigeria’s oil sector could undermine government efforts to stabilize fuel prices and reduce inflationary pressures.
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