FUEL PRICE RISES TO N1,150 PER LITRE FOLLOWING DANGOTE REFINERY'S PRICE HIKE

Read Time:2 Minute, 27 Second

The retail price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), commonly known as petrol, has risen to between N1,030 and N1,150 per litre due to an increase in prices by Dangote Refinery and adjustments in ex-depot rates.

Reports from Friday revealed that the $20 billion Dangote Refinery raised its ex-depot price for petrol from N899 per litre to N955 per litre.

In a notification sent to its customers, Dangote Refinery outlined the updated pricing structure, stating that marketers purchasing between two million and 4.99 million litres would pay N955 per litre, while those buying five million litres or more would pay N950 per litre.

This marks a N55 or 6.17% increase in petrol prices compared to the previous ex-depot rate of N899.50 per litre, which had been offered as a holiday discount to Nigerians last December.

The price adjustment by Dangote Refinery has triggered varying retail price increases across filling stations.

Chinedu Ukadike, spokesperson for the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, confirmed that the product might sell for over N1,100 per litre at filling stations operated by association members nationwide.

“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.

Meanwhile, the president of the Petroleum Products Retail Outlet Owners Association of Nigeria, Billy Gillis-Harry, said although it is too early to project petrol retail price after Dangote Refinery’s upward price review, it is certain that the product would cost more.

“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 stated.

Some filling stations in the federal capital territory, Abuja, had already effected at least a N50 adjustment to their petrol prices.

For example, filling stations that were selling petrol at N980 per litre on Friday morning have now raised their prices to between N1,040 and N1,155 per litre.

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

It is worth noting that depot owners also raised their petrol prices on Thursday.

A few days ago, it was reported that a petrol price increase was likely due to the rising crude oil price, which had reached $81 per barrel.

In December of last year, petrol prices had dropped to around N935 and N1,100 per litre across the country.