Dangote Raises Petrol Price Again
Nigeria’s Dangote Petroleum Refinery has increased the gantry price of Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) by ₦15 to ₦1,200 per litre, effective August 26, marking the second upward adjustment in less than a week even as global crude oil prices declined.
In an official email to customers issued on Tuesday by the refinery’s Group Commercial Operations, the company announced the revised depot prices for both gantry and coastal deliveries. The coastal price per metric tonne rose from ₦1,562,265 to ₦1,582,380. Customers were instructed to return existing Authorisation to Collect documents for repricing, with new volume contracts to be issued before loading resumes.
On August 21 the 650,000-barrels-per-day facility had raised the gantry price from ₦1,165 to ₦1,185 per litre. The combined ₦35 increase over five days coincides with a sharp retreat in international oil benchmarks. On Tuesday West Texas Intermediate crude stood at $82.13 per barrel (down $2.88 or 3.39 percent), Brent crude at $88.37 per barrel (down $3.80 or 4.12 percent), and Murban crude at $92.71 per barrel (down $8.73 or 8.61 percent). Brent had fallen roughly $5 from levels near $93.48 around the time of the previous hike.
The Dangote Group had not issued a public explanation for the latest increase by early Wednesday. Industry observers note that refinery pricing in Nigeria rarely tracks crude oil movements in isolation. Exchange-rate fluctuations of the naira, freight and logistics costs, refining margins, competition with imported products, and working-capital requirements frequently influence ex-depot rates. Dangote’s prices have often remained competitive relative to import parity; earlier in August its rates sat below estimates from the Major Energy Marketers Association of Nigeria for the landed cost of imported petrol.
Marketers and depot operators who received the circular are expected to begin repricing. Analysts project that the ₦15 rise at the gantry, once transportation, landing charges and retail margins are factored in, could push average pump prices toward ₦1,250 per litre in many locations. Actual retail prices will vary by region, supply logistics and individual station operators.
The adjustment arrives amid continued volatility in the global oil market, driven in part by geopolitical tensions. Domestic fuel pricing in Nigeria has been highly sensitive since the 2023 subsidy removal, with pump prices fluctuating widely as the Dangote Refinery scaled up output and reduced reliance on imports.
Africa’s largest single-train refinery has adjusted its PMS gantry prices multiple times in 2026 in response to shifting crude costs, competitive pressures from private depots, and policy shifts. Periods of price cuts earlier in the year demonstrated responsiveness to softer international markets. The latest series of increases underlines the complex interplay between global benchmarks and local commercial realities.
