Dangote Slashes Wholesale Petrol Price Amid Market Tensions

Dangote Petroleum Refinery has reduced its ex-depot price of Premium Motor Spirit by N25 per litre, lowering the gantry rate from N799 to N774, a move that sharpens competition with fuel importers and could ease pump prices if marketers pass on the savings.
In a notice issued to marketers on Tuesday, the refinery said the new price takes immediate effect nationwide. “This is to notify you of a change in our PMS gantry price from N799 per litre to N774 per litre,” the company said, adding that the adjustment strengthens the competitiveness of locally refined products.
The refinery said the current landing cost of imported petrol from Lome stands at about N793 per litre, compared with its revised ex-depot price of N774. By pricing below the estimated import landing cost, Dangote has reasserted itself as the lowest-priced wholesale source in the market, after briefly losing that edge when it raised its gantry rate earlier this year.
In early 2026, the refinery increased its ex-depot price to N799 per litre after selling at N699 during the festive period. The increase pushed retail prices at some filling stations supplied by the refinery to around N839 per litre.
As of Tuesday, petrol was still retailing at about N839 per litre at MRS and other outlets supplied by Dangote. At Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited retail stations, the product sells at N840 per litre in Lagos and N875 per litre in Abuja. Retail prices typically lag wholesale adjustments, reflecting distribution costs and existing inventory purchased at earlier rates.
The N25 reduction puts pressure on importers who had recently been offering lower prices than Dangote’s previous ex-depot rate. With the new price set at N774 per litre, marketers dependent on imported cargoes face a choice between trimming margins to remain competitive or adjusting volumes.
Industry publication Petroleumprice.ng reported that depot pricing strategies had reduced incentives for marketers to travel long distances to lift products from the Dangote refinery. Analysts say the revised pricing could alter those logistics decisions, particularly for operators in the southwest, where transport costs are relatively lower.
The move comes amid an intensifying dispute between the refinery and sections of the downstream sector over supply capacity and import dependence. The Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria has argued that the 650,000-barrel-per-day facility cannot fully meet Nigeria’s petrol demand, even at current consumption levels. Its executive secretary, Olufemi Adewole, said marketers have continued to import fuel to sustain their businesses.
Dangote has rejected claims that it is unable to satisfy local demand and has accused unnamed interests of promoting misinformation suggesting that the refinery imports finished petrol into Nigeria. The company described the allegations as a campaign by “unpatriotic and unscrupulous individuals” opposed to a shift away from fuel imports. The dispute has been linked to reports attributed to S&P Global, which the refinery disputes.
The latest price cut underscores Dangote’s strategy of leveraging scale and domestic refining capacity to displace imported supply. By setting its gantry price below the estimated landing cost of foreign cargoes, the refinery is seeking to consolidate market share in a sector adjusting to subsidy removal and price liberalisation.
For consumers, the immediate impact will depend on how quickly retailers adjust pump prices. For marketers and importers, the reduction marks another round in an increasingly competitive downstream market where pricing power is shifting toward domestic refining capacity.