- Drama as Marketers Turn Away from Dangote Refinery
By Abiola Olawale
There is a dramatic turn of events as Petroleum marketers across the country have reportedly increased their reliance on imported petrol, with imports reaching 154.22 million litres per week between March 17 and March 23, 2025, according to data from the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA).
This development comes as marketers appear to be bypassing the locally produced fuel from the Dangote Refinery.
The NPA reported that vessels carrying 115,000 metric tonnes of premium motor spirit (PMS), equivalent to 154.22 million litres, arrived at key ports including Tincan Port and Lekki Deep Seaport in Lagos, as well as Calabar Port in Cross River State, during the week in review.
A breakdown of NPA’s data shows that the first shipment carrying 20,000 metric tonnes of PMS allocated to the West African Port Services berthed at the Dangote terminal on Monday, March 17, 2025, around 4:03 pm.
Also, on March 17, 2025, two vessels conveying 20,000 metric tonnes, respectively, berthed at the Tincan and Calabar seaports. This was followed by the arrival of a 20,000 metric-tonne Watson vessel on Thursday, March 20, at 3:18 pm. It berthed at the Ecomarine terminal and was handled by a Kach maritime agent.
Also, Binta Saleh’s ship was scheduled to berth at the Tincan port in Lagos carrying 5,000 metric tonnes of imported petrol on Friday, March 21, at midnight.
On Saturday, March 22, at 11:06 am, another vessel carrying 15,000 metric tonnes of fuel will berth at the Calabar port. It was assigned to Peak Shipping as its agent.
At the same port, a vessel carrying 15,000 metric tonnes of fuel will arrive at the Eco Marine terminal on Sunday at 5:10 pm. This means the seven vessels should bring in 115,000 metric tonnes.
Summarily, going by the conversion rate of 1,341 litres to one metric tonne, it therefore means that the petrol retailers and marketers are bringing in about 154.22 million litres of petrol within the period under review.
This surge in imports coincided with the Dangote Refinery’s decision to suspend its sales of petroleum products in Naira, a move reportedly linked to ongoing disputes over the Naira-for-crude deal with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL).
Meanwhile, some industry insiders have pointed to pricing as a key factor for the surge in imports. This comes as the landing cost of imported PMS has reportedly dropped to between N774 and N797 per litre as of mid-March, while Dangote’s ex-depot price ranges between N815 and N825 per litre.
It would be recalled also that the Petroleum Retailers Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria had previously warned that its members would seek alternatives if pricing or supply issues persisted.
This development also comes as 650,000 barrels-per-day Dangote Refinery, hailed as a game-changer for Nigeria’s energy sector, has been facing challenges in convincing local marketers to fully embrace its products.
Africa’s richest man, who is also the Chief Executive Officer of the Dangote Refinery, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, has severally maintained that the 650,000 barrels-per-day holds over 500 million litres of petrol in stock.
According to him, this is enough to meet national demand for over 10 days.
