Dangote Petroleum Refinery has resumed selling Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) in naira effective July 22, 2026, ending a week-long dollar-only pricing regime that followed a suspension of truck loading operations. The refinery issued a new pricing notice to marketers, setting the ex-depot gantry price at N1,215 per litre, a 13.02% increase from the previous N1,075 per litre. The coastal loading price was also adjusted upward to N1,602,495 per metric tonne from N1,441,575 per metric tonne.
Background to the Dollar Pricing Suspension
The refinery had halted gantry and coastal loading on July 15, 2026, citing difficulties with the federal government's naira-for-crude supply arrangement. Reduced crude allocations under the scheme forced Dangote to source feedstock from international markets, where payments are denominated in US dollars. During the suspension, petrol was priced at $0.779 per litre, diesel at $1.087 per litre, and Jet A1 aviation fuel at $0.942 per litre. Independent marketers pushed back hard against the dollar policy, arguing it would force them to chase scarce foreign exchange and drive up operating costs significantly.
New Pricing Details and Immediate Effect
In the pricing notice from the refinery's commercial department, titled "PMS Price Change Communication," Dangote stated: "Please be advised that all unloaded gantry volumes will be subject to repricing at the new price, which is effective 22nd July 2026. Kindly proceed with placing your order. Should you require any further clarification, please do not hesitate to contact us." Chief Executive Officer of Petroleumprice.ng, Jeremiah Olatide, confirmed the development, saying: "Yes, the refinery has returned to pricing its product in naira." The new prices took effect immediately, and marketers were instructed to place orders under the revised template.
Market Impact and Analysts' Estimates
Analysts estimated that supplying Nigeria's daily petrol demand of roughly 50 million litres under a dollar-payment model would require about $40 million per day, equivalent to more than $14 billion each year, according to BusinessDay. As loading stalled, marketers turned to private depots, and average ex-depot petrol prices climbed from around N1,075 per litre to about N1,275 per litre during that period. Although the new naira price of N1,215 per litre is higher than the refinery's pre-suspension rate, it remains below the N1,275 per litre that some private depots were charging during the disruption. Industry stakeholders believe the resumption of naira-based sales could help stabilise fuel loading and ease distribution pressures across the downstream sector.
Private Depots Adjust Prices Upward
In a related development, private fuel depots across Nigeria raised petrol prices above N1,200 per litre following the halt in gantry loading operations at Dangote Refinery. Data gathered by Petroleumprice.ng showed that depots in Lagos, Warri, Port Harcourt and Calabar revised their ex-depot prices to between N1,200 and N1,230 per litre on Thursday. The price adjustments followed Dangote Refinery's decision to stop product loading at its gantry, fuelling fears of further increases at the pump. The return to naira pricing is expected to alleviate some of the forex pressure on independent marketers and potentially moderate retail pump prices in the coming days.
