Dangote Petroleum Refinery has resumed the sale of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), also known as petrol, in naira, ending its brief switch to dollar-denominated transactions.
However, the refinery has increased its ex-depot price by ₦140 per litre, raising the cost from ₦1,075 to ₦1,215 per litre.
The development comes a week after the 650,000-barrel-per-day refinery suspended petrol truck loading and introduced dollar pricing for refined petroleum products, a move that disrupted fuel supply and triggered price increases across the downstream petroleum sector.
In a notice issued by its commercial department, the refinery informed marketers that the new gantry price of petrol had taken immediate effect. The coastal loading price was also revised upward from ₦1,441,575 per metric tonne to ₦1,602,495 per metric tonne.
The refinery stated that all unloaded gantry volumes would be repriced under the new arrangement and encouraged marketers to place fresh orders.
Industry platform Petroleumprice.ng confirmed the return to naira transactions, noting that marketers and customers had already been notified of the refinery’s decision to resume gantry operations under the revised pricing structure.
The refinery had suspended both gantry and coastal loading operations on July 15 after introducing dollar pricing, citing challenges associated with sourcing crude oil outside the Federal Government’s naira-for-crude arrangement.
The policy compelled many marketers to turn to private depots, where petrol prices reportedly rose from about ₦1,075 per litre to approximately ₦1,275 per litre due to supply constraints.
Independent marketers had also suspended purchases from the refinery, citing difficulties in accessing the foreign exchange required for dollar transactions.
Industry stakeholders warned at the time that the policy could increase pressure on Nigeria’s foreign exchange market, weaken the naira and further raise fuel prices nationwide.
Dangote Refinery had defended the temporary switch to dollar sales, explaining that it was sourcing additional crude oil from the international market and therefore faced increasing dollar-denominated costs.
Following concerns raised by petroleum marketers and other industry operators, the Federal Government intervened and discussions on the naira-for-crude arrangement are said to be ongoing.
Although petrol sales have now returned to naira, the new ex-depot price of ₦1,215 per litre remains significantly higher than the previous rate, raising concerns about possible increases in retail pump prices.
Industry analysts say the return to naira transactions is expected to ease supply challenges and restore stability in fuel distribution, but caution that the higher wholesale cost could ultimately be passed on to consumers if market conditions remain unchanged.