The Dangote Petroleum Refinery has raised its Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) gantry price to N995 per litre, representing a significant increase of N221 within four days, amid fluctuations in global crude oil prices and shipping costs.
A senior official of the refinery confirmed the development to Punch Online on Friday, explaining that the latest price adjustment followed recent shifts in global oil market fundamentals.
“Yes, the price has been reviewed. The new gantry price is now N995 per litre,” the official said.
The adjustment follows an earlier increase this week when the refinery raised its ex-depot price from N774 per litre to N874 per litre.
With the latest revision, the price of petrol from the refinery has jumped from N774 to N995 per litre in four days, amounting to an increase of about N221, or roughly 29 per cent during the period.
Checks on petroleumprice.ng also confirmed that the revised gantry price had been updated on the portal, indicating a new benchmark for pricing in Nigeria’s downstream petroleum sector.
The latest hike may lead to another round of increases in pump prices nationwide, with petrol potentially selling above N1,050 per litre in many areas depending on transportation costs and marketers’ margins.
The development also comes after a brief suspension of petrol loading at the refinery, which had earlier fuelled speculation among marketers that another price adjustment was imminent.
Sources said truck-out operations for petrol were halted at about 2:00 a.m. on Friday, leaving depot operators and bulk marketers uncertain about the refinery’s next pricing move.
Market players noted that similar interruptions in loading activities at the facility have often preceded changes in price.
Officials at the refinery have consistently defended their pricing structure, maintaining that petrol prices must align with prevailing global crude oil costs, logistics expenses and operational realities.
In a statement issued on Thursday, the refinery stressed that its prices are not set arbitrarily but are determined by international market movements and the cost of crude oil used in refining.
The refinery added that its pricing model reflects Nigeria’s shift to a fully deregulated downstream petroleum market, where petrol prices are largely influenced by global crude oil prices, foreign exchange rates and supply dynamics.
It also pledged to ensure Nigeria is shielded from global supply disruptions by prioritising supply to the domestic market amid the ongoing US-Iran war.
“The Dangote Refinery will ensure that Nigeria is insulated from these supply shocks by prioritising supply to the domestic market. This is one of the many benefits of domestic refining.
“The conflict has driven global crude and freight prices sharply higher, with benchmark Brent crude prices rising by about 26 per cent within a short period to above $84.0 per barrel,” the statement read.
The refinery noted that it had absorbed about 20 percent of the rising costs to reduce pressure on the domestic market.
Meanwhile, data from the Major Energies Marketers Association of Nigeria showed that imported petrol remains cheaper than locally refined petrol.
According to the association, Dangote’s petrol gantry price stood at N874 per litre as of Monday, while the landing cost of imported petrol was N809.37 per litre, creating a difference of about N64 between the two sources.
The association also reported that Dangote’s diesel price was N1,169.42 per litre compared with N1,125.70 per litre for imported diesel.
(PUNCH)
