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Founder and President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has announced a nationwide reduction in the pump price of petrol to ₦739 per litre, effective from Tuesday, with the rollout set to begin at MRS filling stations in Lagos.
Speaking at a press briefing at the Lekki Refinery on Sunday, Dangote disclosed that the refinery had already lowered its gantry price from ₦828 to ₦699 per litre two days earlier. He said the new pump price would be strictly enforced and reaffirmed his resolve to curb price manipulation in the downstream sector.
“Starting from Tuesday, MRS will start selling petrol at N739/litre. Definitely, we will enforce that low price. We will make sure that it’s implemented. If you have your truck, you can come here and buy it. We are selling at N699. The N699 includes the percentage of NMDPRA. So what actually comes out to us is about N389 or so.
“Those who want to keep the price to sabotage the government, we will fight as much as we can to make sure that these prices are down. N970 is not the price. If you have money to come and buy, you can pick up petrol at N699,” he told journalists.
Dangote raised concerns that some fuel marketers were deliberately keeping pump prices high, thereby undermining the impact of the price reduction. He claimed he had been informed that certain marketers were encouraged to maintain elevated prices, a move he said would fail.
“I was told that the marketers have met with [some officials] and were told to make sure that the price is maintained high. But this price we are going to introduce, we are going to start with MRS stations most likely on Tuesday in Lagos; that N970 per litre, you won’t see it again,” he said.
He called on members of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) and other buyers to take advantage of the reduced gantry price, stressing that sufficient supply was available.
“We have asked anybody who can buy 10 trucks to come and buy 10 trucks at N699. We are going to use whatever resources we have to make sure we crash the price down.
“Within a week to 10 days, we will be able to deliver. For this December and January, we don’t want people to sell petrol for more than N740 nationwide,” Dangote stated.
Addressing logistics costs, Dangote argued that transportation from the refinery should not justify steep pump prices. He noted that freight costs within Lagos range between ₦10 and ₦15 per litre, making excessive retail prices unjustifiable.
“Freight within Lagos is N10 or N15, maximum. So if it’s N10 to N15, everything is going to cost you N715. Why do you want to sell at N900? People should get the real price,” he said.
He also criticised the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) over its decision to issue 47 import licences for more than 7.5 billion litres of petrol for the first quarter of 2026, arguing that such approvals undermine domestic refining.
“They normally issue licences in the middle of the month. They are now ready to issue licences for about 7.5 billion litres for the first quarter of 2026, despite the fact that we have guaranteed to supply enough quantity.
“Those modular refineries are almost on the verge of collapse. None of them is making a dime,” he said.
