BY VICTOR BUORO, ABUJA – Following the suspension of the Naira-for-crude agreement between the Dangote Refinery and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPC Ltd), most Filling Stations in the country have adjusted their pump price upward from between N930 and N970 per litre.
The agreement was disrupted as a result of a misalignment between crude allocations to foreign creditors and actual sales revenue.
An Industry insider told Forefront News that a significant portion of the nation’s crude oil had to be allocated to foreign lenders for the settlement of loans thereby limiting the ability of the Dangote Refinery to maintain its naira-based fuel supply agreement.
Towards this end, private depot operators have taken advantage of the situation to increase their fuel prices, thereby pushing up costs for domestic consumers.
Accordingly, MRS filling stations latest price index showed that the pump price for petrol in Lagos has increased from N860 to ₦930 per litre in Lagos and from N890 to ₦960 per litre in northern parts of Nigeria.
The new pricing marked a sharp increase price of about N70 as reflected in the adjustment which was not officially announced, but took effect on Friday, March 28, 2025.
It was gathered that the new pricing was as a result of the recent suspension of naira-denominated petroleum sales by the Dangote refinery.
States in the northern parts of the country which were selling petrol for ₦880 per litre are now faced with an increase of ₦80 hike.
Accordingly, the high increase in petrol prices at MRS stations is expected to trigger a domino effect, as other fuel retailers will carry out a commensurate increase in the cost of the product.
An updated pricing list from MRS Oil & Gas highlights regional price variations showing Lagos selling at ₦930 per litre which is the lowest in the country while the South-West & Kwara states are expected to sell at ₦940 per litre
However, the South-South and South-East made up of Edo, Abia, Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Rivers, Cross River, and Enugu
will now sell at ₦960 per litre while the Northern parts of Nigeria especially Abuja, Kaduna, Benue, Kogi, Niger, Sokoto, Kebbi, and Nasarawa will sell at ₦950 per litre
In the same vein, states comprising; Zamfara, Kano, Jos, Bauchi, Taraba, Adamawa, Borno, Katsina, Jigawa, Gombe, and Yobe will sell at ₦960 per litre
The fluctuations in Free Carrier Agreement (FCA) prices reflect regional differences which influences how much marketers pay before reselling petrol, thus varies across the different regions.
Expectedly, the impact of the sharp increase in the price of petrol would further escalate transportation costs and a quadruple increase in prices for goods and services nationwide as well as worsen the rising cost of living in the country.
It was however gathered from experts in the industry that once Dangote Refinery is able to secure crude allocations from the NNPC Ltd and resumes selling in Naira, prices of petrol would stabilize.
