“₦550 per litre”, Marketers Move To Import Cheaper Fuel As Dangote Refinery Halts Sale

• The frequent and unpredictable fuel price cuts from Dangote Refinery and the NNPCL have caused marketers major losses
• Now, the marketers are teaming up to negotiate better deals with importers and secure
• Meanwhile, the Dangote Refinery has reportedly halted the sale of fuel to Nigerian stations amid global price fluctuations

Legit.ng journalist Ruth Okwumbu-Imafidon has over a decade of experience in business reporting across digital and mainstream media.

Oil marketers in Nigeria have commenced negotiations with international suppliers to secure cheaper petroleum products.

This is a strategic move to stay competitive, given the low prices already offered by the Dangote Refinery and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL).

The price war between the two big players has resulted in multiple price cuts over the last few months, with the importers and oil marketers bearing the brunt as they cannot sell their imported stock.

However, this move to secure cheaper fuel imports can give them a fighting chance to reclaim a sizeable share of the Nigerian market.

Note that Dangote refinery currently sells the product at N825 while the partners retail at N865 in Lagos State.

Oil marketers move to get cheaper fuel

In an interview with the PUNCH, the National President of the Petroleum Products Retail Outlet Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN), Billy Gillis-Harry, said negotiations are ongoing to get affordable petrol from foreign traders.

He noted that the prices from the domestic refiners are worrisome, and many filling stations have shut down due to the inability to afford them.

He said:

“How do you get cheaper fuel? It is only by arrangement. Marketers will have to find a way to buy what they need to buy. The only way we can do it is to collaborate and buy products from a very dependable importer. That’s the only way we can do it.”

He added that the marketers had once reached an agreement with a foreign trader to import fuel at ₦550 per litre and to pay in naira instead of dollars, and Gillis-Harry insisted that it could be done again.

Gillis Harry explained:

“It is negotiation. That is the power of numbers. That’s why PETROAN can do that because we have the numbers to determine how our businesses can come. But now, we have to make sure that we get it right.”

The PETROAN president revealed that the association had already struck deals with some of the foreign traders in November 2024, and would now be pursuing them to a logical end.

He added that while they encourage local production, the sudden price changes from the domestic refiners have also posed a major challenge for the marketers, often impacting their profits.

Gillis-Harry also criticized the recent move from the Dangote Refinery to distribute petroleum products nationwide, noting that it could cause job losses among marketers and tanker drivers.

This is contrary to the stand of other energy consultants, who insist that thousands of jobs will be created from the initiative.

Marketers shut down, stop selling fuel

In related news, several filling stations have shut down and stopped selling PMS in Lagos.

Legit.ng checks show that the move is in anticipation of a price hike following the recent spike in global crude prices.

Meanwhile, the Major Energy Marketers Association of Nigeria (MEMAN) has confirmed an increase in depot prices, even though several depots still refuse to release new prices.

Source: Legit.ng