Price war: Depot owners in trouble as Dangote Refinery resumes bulk sales at N877 per litre

The Dangote Petroleum Refinery yesterday resumed full operations while raising the gantry price of Premium Motor Spirit, PMS, also known as petrol by seven per cent to N877 per liter from N820 per litre.

Checks by Vanguard indicated that oil marketers buying two million litres and above would benefit from the relatively low price.

The refinery gantry price remains lower than the N890 – N900 per litre depot price charged by many depot owners.

According to data released by Petroleumprice.ng, yesterday, depot owners such as Pinnacle and Rainoil put their depot prices at N890 and N885 per liter, respectively.

The data also showed that Optima and Matrix put their depot prices at N880 and N890 per liter, respectively.

Chief Executive Officer of Petroleumprice.ng, Olatide Jeremiah, “The downstream sector continues to witness the price war. With its huge size and capacity, the 650,000 barrels per day refinery continues to determine the pace. Depot owners and others have to follow. So, we expect depot prices to reduce in the coming weeks. We also hope that the expected low prices will be extended to the filling stations nationwide.”

Checks by Vanguard yesterday showed that many filling stations sold the product in excess of N900 per litre.

The President of the Oil and Gas Service Providers Association of Nigeria, OGSPAN, Mazi Obasi, said: “The management and staff of Dangote Refinery should be commended for the successful commencement of operations and their resilience in overcoming various economic and operational challenges posed by saboteurs within the oil and gas value chain.”

Obasi said the establishment and success of the Dangote Refinery represent a significant milestone in Nigeria’s quest for energy independence and economic stability. He assured that OGSPAN remains committed to partnering with the refinery in advocacy and public enlightenment efforts aimed at educating Nigerians on the immense benefits of local refining to the national economy, job creation, and foreign exchange stability.