Petrol marketers have expressed fears that the pump price of the commodity may shoot up in the coming days following Dangote Refinery’s decision to halt the sale of petroleum products to the Nigerian market.
The indigenous refinery announced on Tuesday, March 18, 2025, that it will no longer supply petrol to the local market, citing the collapse of its naira-for-crude deal with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited.
The announcement followed a series of discussions between Dangote Refinery and the national oil company over a possible renewal of the six-month crude-for-naira deal.
The old agreement, which will cease to be valid next month, was reportedly terminated by the NNPCL a fortnight ago, as negotiations between both parties ended in a deadlock on Tuesday.
“We wish to inform you that Dangote Petroleum Refinery has temporarily halted the sale of petroleum products in Naira. This decision is necessary to avoid a mismatch between our sales proceeds and our crude oil purchase obligations, which are currently denominated in U.S. dollars,” Dangote said in a statement.
“To date, our sales of petroleum products in Naira have exceeded the value of Naira-denominated crude we have received. As a result, we must temporarily adjust our sales currency to align with our crude procurement currency.
“Our attention has also been drawn to reports on the internet claiming that we are stopping loading due to an incident of ticketing fraud. This is a malicious falsehood. Our systems are robust, and we have had no fraud issues.
“We remain committed to serving the Nigerian market efficiently and sustainably. As soon as we receive an allocation of Naira-denominated crude cargoes from NNPC, we will promptly resume petroleum product sales in Naira.
“We appreciate your understanding and cooperation during this period.”
Meanwhile, the Public Relations Officer of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, IPMAN, Chief Chinedu Ukadike, has predicted an increase in petrol prices following Dangote’s announcement.
He explained that the pump price would likely go up due to the cost of sourcing foreign exchange to pay for the product.
He also envisaged that marketers may resort to selling their petrol stock in dollars as the currency has now become the means of exchange in Nigeria.
“The pressure on dollar will increase because it has become the means of exchange. Marketers will begin to sell petrol at filling stations in dollars. And this will have negative impact on the prices of petroleum products across the country,” Ukadike told Vanguard.
