The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) is poised to introduce a new pricing regime for petrol, as reported on October 6, 2024. This move follows the company's recent acquisition of approximately 103 million liters of petrol from the Dangote Refinery between September 15 and 30, 2024.
During this period, the refinery managed to load 2,207 out of the 3,621 trucks dispatched, transporting a total of 102,973,025 liters, which accounted for only 26 percent of the expected output.
The NNPC began its petrol lifting operations from the Dangote Refinery on September 15, acting as the sole off-taker of the product. On the same day, it was announced that the company was purchasing petrol from the refinery at ₦898.78 per liter and selling it to marketers at ₦765.99 per liter, effectively subsidizing the product by nearly ₦133 per liter.
Despite this subsidy, insiders have warned that an upward adjustment in pump prices is inevitable due to the gradual exhaustion of imported petrol stock and increased reliance on cargoes from the Dangote Refinery.
Previously, the NNPC had indicated in a pricing template released on September 16 that once all costs were calculated, petrol prices at its Lagos stations would rise to ₦950.22 per liter, ₦980.22 in Rivers State, and ₦992.22 in Abuja.
The pricing template further estimated that the cost would reach ₦999.22 per liter in Nigeria’s North-West geopolitical zone, with prices in Borno and other North-Eastern states expected to hit ₦1,019 per liter. In Nigeria’s South-east, the company said petrol would cost ₦980.22 while consumers in South-west states (Oyo, Ogun, Ekiti, Osun, Ondo) would pay ₦960.22 per liter for the product.
However, these estimates are now considered outdated due to fluctuations in foreign exchange rates and rising crude oil prices, exacerbated by escalating tensions in the Middle East.
As of the latest reports, crude oil is trading for more than $78 per barrel, and the naira is exchanging for ₦1,660 to a dollar. Consequently, an official stated, "there is no way a litre of petrol can sell for below ₦1350 per litre in Nigeria."
This anticipated price hike comes after the NNPC had already increased the price of petrol at its pumps from ₦617 per liter to between ₦855 and ₦897, depending on location, effective from September 3, 2024. The impending changes shows the complex dynamics of fuel pricing in Nigeria, influenced by both domestic and international factors.
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