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Nigeria’s downstream petroleum market is sliding deeper into a price war, with several filling stations now selling Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) below the N739 per litre benchmark set by the Dangote Petroleum Refinery.
Since Dangote cut pump prices from about N900 to N739 per litre in December, competition has intensified across the retail fuel market. Importers and depot owners have repeatedly warned of mounting losses, as many are now forced to sell below cost simply to stay competitive.
Retail Prices Fall Below Dangote-Backed Rates
A weekend survey by The PUNCH revealed that several retailers are now pricing petrol below MRS Oil — the Dangote refinery’s key retail partner tasked with enforcing the N739 price point.
As of Sunday:
- NIPCO sold PMS at N738 per litre
- SAO filling stations offered petrol at N735
- Akiavic sold at N737
- An AP station in Mowe, Ogun State, reduced its price to N736, undercutting a nearby MRS outlet
Retailers operating within the same locations are now closely monitoring competitors’ pump prices to avoid losing customers. Motorists, in turn, are gravitating towards stations with the lowest prices, leaving higher-priced outlets struggling for patronage.
Importers Sell Below Cost to Stay in the Game
According to the Major Energies Marketers Association of Nigeria (MEMAN), the average landing cost of imported petrol stands at N762.38 per litre, while Dangote’s ex-gantry price remains N699. Despite this gap, importers have still adjusted pump prices downward to compete with Dangote-supplied fuel.
Earlier reports indicated that both Dangote and fuel importers were absorbing losses running into billions of naira.
An industry operator, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to intense competition in the sector, said the price cuts were driven purely by survival instincts.
“This is not about whether imported petrol is cheaper or not. It is simply a market strategy to secure market share. We are not at war with any marketer, depot operator, or refinery,” the source said.
Dangote’s Price Cut Shook the Market
On December 12, the Dangote refinery stunned marketers by slashing its gantry price by N129, from N828 to N699 per litre.
Days later, Dangote Group President Aliko Dangote accused some marketers of planning to keep pump prices artificially high despite the reduction. He vowed to enforce the new pricing regime nationwide through MRS outlets.
“We are going to use whatever resources we have to make sure that we crash the price down. For December and January, we don’t want people to sell petrol for more than N740 nationwide,” Dangote said.
“Those who want to sabotage the government by keeping prices high, we will fight as much as we can. If you have money, you can buy petrol at N699.”
As MRS stations in Lagos and Ogun States began selling at N739, motorists boycotted outlets with higher prices, leading to long queues at MRS locations. However, the tide is now shifting as rival stations undercut even the Dangote-backed price.
‘The Market Will Regulate Itself’ — IPMAN
The spokesperson of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Chinedu Ukadike, said price competition has become unavoidable in a deregulated market.
“Patronage will be determined by pricing. Nobody is regulating you — the market will regulate itself,” Ukadike said.
“Wherever fuel is cheaper, that is where motorists will go. If you don’t reduce your price, bank interest will keep eating your capital.”
He added that once Dangote reduced the gantry price to N699, marketers had no choice but to follow suit or risk losing customers entirely.
Dangote Expands Supply, Eases Access
In a statement released over the weekend, the Dangote refinery said its PMS supply programme began in October 2025 with an offtake volume of 600 million litres, which rose to 900 million litres in November and further expanded to 1.5 billion litres in December.
The refinery said it has since opened PMS supply to all qualified marketers, bulk consumers, and filling station operators in line with downstream market liberalisation.
Since December 16, 2025, Dangote disclosed that it has consistently loaded between 31 million and 48 million litres of PMS daily, depending on market demand — figures it said are verifiable through regulatory depot records.
To widen participation and improve distribution efficiency, the refinery introduced several measures, including:
- Reducing minimum purchase volumes from two million litres to 250,000 litres
- Offering a 10-day credit facility backed by bank guarantees
According to the refinery, these steps are aimed at boosting liquidity, supporting small and medium-scale operators, cutting reliance on imports, and driving more competitive pump prices.
On Rising Imports
Addressing the spike in petrol imports recorded in November, Dangote said the increase followed import licences approved by the former leadership of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, which sanctioned volumes beyond prevailing domestic demand.
The refinery stressed that the development had nothing to do with its operational capacity or supply commitments.
Reaffirming its position, Dangote pledged continued collaboration with regulators and industry stakeholders to support domestic refining, conserve foreign exchange, stabilise fuel prices, and strengthen Nigeria’s long-term energy security.
