Dangote Petroleum Refinery has increased its Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) gantry price by N85 per litre, raising the wholesale price from N1,265 to N1,350 per litre and fuelling fresh concerns over another round of petrol price increases across the country.
According to Petroleumprice.ng, the latest adjustment represents a 6.7 per cent increase and comes amid rising international crude oil prices and higher petroleum product replacement costs.
The development is significant as the new Dangote price is now above the current PMS landing-cost benchmark of N1,311 per litre, adding pressure to pricing decisions by depot owners and independent petroleum marketers.
The refinery had previously maintained its Lagos gantry price at N1,265 per litre despite rising international market prices. However, the renewed increase in crude oil and product replacement costs appears to have prompted the latest adjustment.
The impact is already being felt across the downstream market, with depot operators adjusting their prices and stock positions in anticipation of higher replacement costs.
Market operators said the pressure was spreading beyond Lagos, with similar concerns emerging in major coastal trading hubs, including Warri, Port Harcourt and Calabar.
However, actual depot prices vary among suppliers, depending on available stock, product source and prevailing market conditions.
The new N1,350 per litre ex-gantry price effectively establishes Dangote Refinery’s latest wholesale reference point, putting additional pressure on depot owners and marketers whose next pricing decisions will depend largely on movements in crude oil prices and international petroleum product replacement costs.
With replacement costs already elevated, the latest adjustment could trigger another round of price reviews across the downstream petroleum market if the international crude oil rally persists.
Global crude oil prices recently climbed above $100 per barrel, reaching their highest level since July, amid escalating military tensions in the Middle East and growing fears of disruptions to crude production and international oil shipments.
Brent crude, the global benchmark against which Nigeria’s crude is priced, rose 2.8 per cent on Wednesday to break above the $100 per barrel mark, while US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) gained 2.9 per cent to $95.70 per barrel.
The rally has pushed both benchmarks more than 60 per cent above their levels at the beginning of the year, heightening concerns that a prolonged energy shock could increase the cost of petrol, diesel, aviation fuel, electricity generation, transportation and manufactured goods globally.
The latest surge was triggered by renewed escalation in the Middle East, following reports of strikes involving Iranian oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman and another vessel near Kharg Island, one of Iran’s major oil export centres.
The development also came amid reports of attempted missile attacks on a US Navy warship, fuelling concerns that the conflict could widen and threaten key oil-producing regions and strategic shipping routes.
For Nigeria’s downstream petroleum market, the combination of higher global crude prices and rising replacement costs could place further pressure on petrol prices in the coming days, depending on developments in the international oil market.
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