Nigeria’s downstream petroleum sector is witnessing growing disagreement among oil marketers following the Federal Government’s suspension of petrol import licences, even as the Dangote Petroleum Refinery on Friday raised its depot price of Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) to N1,175 per litre amid rising global crude oil prices.
Dangote reversed an earlier reduction of N100 announced earlier in the week, as a fresh surge in global crude oil prices pushes up refining costs. The price adjustment also affected the refinery’s coastal supply price, which rose from N1,378,548 per metric tonne to N1,512,648 per metric tonne, according to an official notice issued to petroleum marketers on Friday.
A senior official who spoke with one of our correspondents anonymously because he was not authorised to speak confirmed on Friday that the refinery adjusted the price upward after briefly reducing the ex-depot price to N1,075 per litre on March 10, 2026, a move that had triggered increased buying activity among depot operators.
The official confirmed the latest adjustment during a telephone conversation. “Yes, it is true,” the official said when asked about the upward price review. The new pricing structure was formally communicated to marketers in a notice signed by the refinery’s Group Commercial Operations Department.
The notice read, “Dear esteemed customer, please be informed that due to the current global geo-political situation, which has further escalated, the PMS gantry and coastal price has been reviewed and updated.”
According to the notice, the gantry price, which represents the cost of petrol loaded directly into trucks at the refinery depot, has increased from N1,075 per litre to N1,175 per litre. Similarly, the coastal supply price was adjusted upward from N1,378,548 per metric tonne to N1,512,648 per metric tonne.
The change represents a N134,100 increase per metric tonne, equivalent to about 9.7 per cent. “Please note that this new gantry and coastal price, as detailed above, will be applied to all unloaded PMS allocation effective 1 pm today, March 13, 2026,” the notice stated.
The price increase comes just days after the refinery reduced the ex-depot price of petrol by N100 or about 8.5 per cent, from N1,175 per litre to N1,075 per litre earlier in the week. Checks on Petroleumprice.ng also confirmed the development, indicating that the price revision had disrupted trading activities across several petroleum depots.
According to market sources quoted by the platform, the sudden upward adjustment prompted depot operators in multiple hubs to temporarily suspend sales as they awaited clarity on the new pricing structure.
“Depot owners across multiple hubs have temporarily halted transactions following the refinery’s upward review of the ex-depot price,” a market source familiar with the development said.
Similarly, loading operations at the refinery were also temporarily suspended to allow for stock reconciliation and alignment with the new pricing framework. A refinery source explained that the decision was largely driven by rising global crude prices, which directly affect refining costs.
“The revision reflects the surge in global crude oil prices. Brent crude moved from around $91 per barrel to about $100 per barrel, and that increase feeds directly into the cost of refining,” the source said.
Marketers disagree
Amidst this, stakeholders, including energy experts, economists, and Nigerian workers, have raised alarm over the suspension of petrol imports by the Federal Government, urging urgent price regulation as the Dangote Petroleum Refinery takes command of Nigeria’s N14.4tn petrol market, signalling a major shake-up in the nation’s energy sector.
Oil marketers have also expressed divergent views over the impact of the halt in petrol import licences and the production capacity of the Dangote refinery to satisfy local fuel needs, following claims that the facility now supplies the bulk of the country’s fuel demand.
The disagreement comes after the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority indicated that local production accounted for a significant share of petrol supply in February. As a result, the regulator said it refused to grant import licences in the first quarter of 2026.
While the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria backed the ban on fuel imports and acknowledged the capacity of the 650,000-barrel Dangote refinery to supply the petrol needed by the country, many major petrol dealers and importers said the country still needed imports to make up for the shortfalls.
Speaking with one of our correspondents, the Vice President of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Ahmed Fashola, supported the regulator’s decision to halt the issuance of petrol import licences, saying the country should prioritise domestic refining.
Fashola said the regulator’s figures should be trusted, noting that the authority has access to accurate data on fuel supply and consumption. “Well, we support and agree with the NMDPRA and their report because they have the information and the data. So there is no need for anybody to doubt that,” he said.
According to him, Nigeria’s growing reliance on local supply represents progress for the downstream petroleum sector. “If today we are able to achieve 90 or 92 per cent of our supply locally, I think we are doing well. We should give it to Dangote,” he stated.
Fashola added that the emergence of the refinery has helped shield Nigerians from potential spikes in fuel prices amid global geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. With the fight among the US, Iran, and Israel, Fashola argued that the price of petrol would have risen to N3,000 or N4,000 per litre.