President of the Dangote Refinery, Aliko Dangote, has stated that the retail price of Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) should not be higher than ₦740 per litre across Nigeria.
Dangote made the disclosure during a briefing on Saturday at the 650,000 barrels-per-day Lekki refinery, noting that MRS filling stations in Lagos are expected to start selling petrol at the new price from Monday.
He pledged to deploy all available resources to resist any form of sabotage aimed at frustrating the refinery’s operations and keeping fuel prices high. According to him, the refinery has introduced incentives to encourage members of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association to lift products directly from the Lagos-based plant.
Dangote said the refinery is determined to force prices down within a short period, stressing that for December and January, petrol should not sell above ₦740 nationwide. He added that petrol is currently available for marketers at ₦699 per litre at the refinery.
He also accused some players of deliberately inflating prices to undermine government efforts, vowing to challenge such actions. Dangote further called for a probe into the head of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, Farouk Ahmed.
His remarks followed the refinery’s recent decision to slash its gantry price by ₦129 to ₦699 per litre, a move aimed at undercutting fuel importers, depot owners, and marketers.
Despite this development, reports indicate that as of Sunday night, several filling stations, including those operated by NNPC, MRS, Mobil, and others, were still selling petrol between ₦905 and ₦937 per litre.
