Dangote, other refineries to crash petrol prices to N300 per litre as production begins

Petrol prices should crash to about N300 per litre when mass production by the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and other refineries begins production.

Refinery owners, under the aegis of the Crude Oil Refinery Owners Association of Nigeria (CORAN), explained that providing enough crude oil to local refiners would crash the price of petrol, stating that foreign refineries were cheating Nigeria.

Dangote others ready to crash petrol prices

CORAN stated that, like diesel prices, which sold for N1,700 before Dangote began production but later crashed to N1,200, the cost of petrol will crash when mass production begins.

Legit.ng reported that Dangote said that petrol import will end from June when the 650,000bpd-capacity refinery begins production.

Dangote refinery announced a crash in the price of diesel from N1,700 per litre to N1,200 as it began production of diesel and aviation fuel.

Punch reports that the CORAN Publicity Secretary, Eche Idoko, said that many companies in Nigeria benefit from petrol imports at Nigeria's expense.

He reportedly stated that when the refineries begin production in large volumes, there would be a petrol price crash to about N300 per litre.

Diesel price to crash further

He predicted that the diesel price would crash further before December 2024, pointing out that the high exchange rate is responsible for the current price of diesel in the country.

According to reports, Nigeria has about 25 licensed modular refineries, five fully functional and producing petroleum products, and 10 are in various stages of completion.

Modular refinery operators disclosed that in addition to the five operational refineries, others remain inoperable due to the challenges of crude oil supply.

Oil marketers also said that petrol costs should be lower than their current price immediately after large production begins in Nigeria.

Marketers express high hopes

The marketers expressed delight with the comment by Nigeria’s wealthiest man, Aliko Dangote, that petrol import will end when his refinery begins operation this month.

Energy policy analyst and Head of Platforms Africa Adeola Yusuf expressed similar optimism, stating that petrol production from the Dangote refinery will drastically crash petrol prices in Nigeria.

Yusuf told Legit.ng in an exclusive interview that what happened to diesel prices will happen to petrol when all the operators begin pumping petrol.

“We are very optimistic that Nigerians will buy petrol for less than its current price when Dangote begins sale. The problem has always been due to import as the landing cost is massive, leading to an increase in pump price.”

“But there is another snag. The Nigerian government will remove petrol subsidy entirely, which might push the prices up, but not so much.”