.jpeg)
Oil marketers in Nigeria have indicated that the Dangote Refinery could potentially reduce petrol prices to a range of N600 to N650 per liter, contingent upon its production costs.
This information was shared by Hammed Fashola, the National
Vice President of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria,
in a statement released on Monday.
His remarks come in light of recent developments suggesting
that the $20 billion refinery will not begin fuel production as previously
anticipated in mid-August 2024, contradicting earlier statements made by Aliko
Dangote, the president of Dangote Group.
Fashola noted that the ongoing crude oil supply crisis poses
a significant challenge for the refinery located in Lagos.
He pointed out that the current official petrol price set by
the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited is N570 per liter, while
private depots are selling it for N700 per liter.
He emphasized that once Dangote's fuel becomes available,
the retail price could potentially drop to between N600 and N650 per liter.
"The official price from the NNPC is approximately N570
per liter, but private depots are charging our members N700 and above.
We anticipate that Dangote could offer prices in the range
of N600 to N650 per liter, with N600 being a reasonable expectation, although
this is dependent on Dangote's production costs," he stated.
It is worth noting that last week, a dispute arose between
the Dangote Refinery and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission
regarding the allocation of 26 million barrels of crude oil.