By Obinna Uballa
Dangote Refinery has reduced the gantry price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), popularly called petrol, by N25 per litre, bringing the ex-depot rate down from N799 to N774 per litre.
The reduction, announced in a notice by the Group Commercial Operations Department of Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals FZE, is effective immediately.
“This is to notify you of a change in our PMS gantry price from N799 per litre to N774 per litre,” the notice read.
The refinery also informed marketers that its PMS lifting incentive had ended, a move expected to enhance the competitiveness of locally refined petroleum products.
Observers said the adjustment reflects broader market factors, including global crude oil prices and the naira exchange rate, which have influenced the cost of the essential commodity over the past year. Last year, the ex-depot cost of petrol fluctuated largely between N700 and over N800 per litre, affecting pump prices nationwide.
The 650,000-barrel-a-day Dangote Refinery, Africa’s largest, began delivering petrol in 2024, following the start of diesel and aviation fuel production in January of that year. Built by Nigerian billionaire Aliko Dangote, the refinery has been central to Nigeria’s efforts to swap crude worth billions of dollars for refined petrol, a practice previously subsidised to keep domestic prices low.
Fuel imports and subsidies have long strained Nigeria’s foreign exchange reserves, particularly amid declining oil revenues and shortages of foreign currency. Since assuming office in May 2023, President Bola Tinubu has ended long-standing fuel subsidies and floated the naira in a series of economic reforms aimed at attracting foreign investment and promoting sustainable growth.
However, the short-term impact of these reforms saw fuel prices double and inflation reach a three-decade high of 34 percent in June 2024. The new reduction by Dangote Refinery offers some relief to Nigerian motorists and consumers struggling with the high cost of fuel.
