Fuel prices have risen sharply in Lagos, Abuja, and other major cities, with the cost of a litre of petrol climbing from ₦860 to ₦930 in Nigeria’s commercial hub, while stations in the North are now selling between ₦950 and ₦970.
This increase means consumers are now paying ₦70 to ₦90 more per litre than they did just days ago.
Filling stations such as MRS Oil & Gas, Ardova Plc, Heyden, and others with supply agreements with the Dangote Petroleum Refinery have adjusted their pump prices accordingly.
Other major retailers, including Matrix Energy, North-West Petroleum, Total Energies, Mobil, Bovas, and Enyo, have also raised prices.
The hike follows Dangote Refinery’s recent decision to temporarily halt the sale of petroleum products in Naira.
In a statement released earlier in March 2025, the refinery explained that the move was necessary to align its sales revenue with crude oil purchase obligations, which are denominated in U.S. dollars.
“This decision is necessary to avoid a mismatch between our sales proceeds and our crude oil purchase obligations, which are currently denominated in U.S. dollars,” the refinery stated.
According to Dangote, its sales in Naira have surpassed the volume of locally priced crude received from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL).
The company assured that it would resume selling in Naira once it received additional crude cargoes from the NNPCL under the domestic currency arrangement.
This development comes amid an ongoing price battle between Dangote Refinery and NNPCL.
In February 2025, Dangote reduced its ex-depot petrol price from ₦890 to ₦825 per litre, leading to retail prices of ₦860 in Lagos, ₦870 in the South-West, ₦880 in the North, and ₦890 in the South-South and South-East.
Shortly after, NNPCL responded by slashing its retail price from ₦945 to ₦860 in Lagos and adjusting rates nationwide.
While industry analysts have welcomed the price competition, calling it a move that will “erode abnormal profit” for capitalists, independent petrol marketers—who still rely on imports—have lamented financial losses due to sudden price changes.
To reduce reliance on the U.S. dollar and stabilize fuel prices, the Federal Executive Council (FEC) had in July 2024 directed the NNPCL to sell crude oil to Dangote and other local refineries in Naira.
However, the NNPCL revealed that its six-month Naira-based crude supply agreement with Dangote Refinery expired in March 2025, though discussions for renewal were ongoing.
Since October 2024, the NNPCL has supplied over 48 million barrels of crude to Dangote Refinery under the Naira arrangement, and more than 84 million barrels since the refinery began operations in 2023.
Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, continues to grapple with energy challenges.
Despite having state-owned refineries, they remained non-functional for decades until 2024, leaving the country reliant on imported fuel, primarily supplied by the NNPCL.
Fuel queues remain a common sight, with prices soaring from around ₦200 per litre to nearly ₦1,000 since President Bola Tinubu removed the fuel subsidy in May 2023.
Dangote Refinery, a $20 billion facility in Lagos, began operations in December 2024 with a processing capacity of 350,000 barrels per day, aiming to reach its full 650,000 barrels per day potential by the end of 2025.
It has already started supplying diesel, aviation fuel, and now petrol to the Nigerian market.