The Federal Government’s failure to renew the Crude for Naira agreement between NNPC Limited and Dangote Refinery, along with rising global crude oil prices, is set to push petrol pump prices higher across Nigeria in April and beyond.
The six-month agreement, which expired in March, was initially brokered by the government last year. It allowed the national oil company to supply crude oil to the 650,000-barrel-per-day Dangote Refinery, with payments made in Naira.
Despite initial challenges, the deal gradually reduced petrol prices from over N1,000 per litre to around N820, depending on location. Following the failure of the two companies to renew the agreement, Dangote Refinery had two weeks ago announced that it was halting sale of petrol products to the domestic market in Naira.
The decision has raised concerns that the price of petroleum products, especially premium motor spirit also known as petrol will rise.
As an indication of what is coming, petrol has risen across the country, with new pump prices reaching up to N960 per litre, according to the latest price list, obtained from MRS Oil and Gas.
This was even as private oil depots have increased the price of petrol to N900 per litre from more than N890 per litre, weekend, due to rising prices of crude oil and other factors in the global market.
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The adjustments, which became effective from March 28, 2025, indicated higher prices across major cities, with Lagos having the lowest rates and northern states recording the highest.
In Lagos, petrol will sell for N930 per litre, while states in the South West, including Ogun, Oyo, Osun, Ekiti, Kwara, and Ondo, will pay N940 per litre.
Also, in the South South and South East regions, including Edo, Abia, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Rivers, Cross River, and Enugu, the product would be sold at N960 per litre.
In Abuja, Kaduna, Benue, Kogi, Niger, Sokoto, Kebbi, and Nasarawa will pay N950 per litre, while Zamfara, Kano, Jos, Bauchi, Taraba, Adamawa, Borno, Katsina, Jigawa, Gombe, and Yobe will pay N960 per litre.
Free Carrier Agreement (FCA) price, which determines how much marketers pay before selling fuel, also differs from one part of the nation to another.
While FCA price stood at N905 per litre, Borno, the FCA prices of Taraba, Adamawa, and Yobe stood at N888 per litre.
Private depots raise prices to N900 per litre
Already, private oil depots have increased the price of petrol to N900 per litre from more than N890 per litre, due to rising prices of crude oil and other factors in the global market.
Checks over the weekend, showed that oil marketers with N900 per litre depot prices included Rainoil, Prudent, A.Y.M Shafa and Mainland.
The checks also indicated that the pump prices of petrol would likely be adjusted upwards when the product gets to the filling stations.
The price of crude oil, a major feedstock involved in refining rose $75 per barrel from $70 per barrel, thus causing refineries, including the $650,000 barrels per day Dangote refinery to incur additional costs.
Checks by Financial Vanguard indicated that in line with its pronouncement, the $20 billion Dangote refinery did not load trucks based on the nation’s Naira for Crude programme, weekend.
The checks showed that lifting through ships that charged dollar rates were ongoing to enable it cover costs, especially as a bulk of its crude oil was still sourced in dollars from the international market.
Petrol price likely to increase further — Marketers
Petroleum products marketers have cautioned that pump prices would likely increase in the coming days unless the Federal Government resolves the dispute between NNPC Limited and Dangote Refinery over the crude for Naira deal.
Speaking to newsmen on the impact of Dangote’s decision, the Public Relations Officer, Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, IPMAN, Chinedu Ukadike said pump price would likely go up due to the cost of sourcing foreign exchange to pay for the product.
He pointed out that marketers may also resort to selling their petroleum products in dollars as the currency has now become the means of exchange in Nigeria.
