The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) has accused Dangote Refinery of petroleum pricing increament eexceeding cost of importation of products.
They voiced their concerns over the pricing, saying that cost of product from the refinery should not be more than the cost of imported fuel.
IPMAN opined that selling Dangote products at a higher rate than imports rubbishes government’s goals of energy self-sufficiency and could affect the cost of goods and services in the market.
Appearance on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief programme, John Kekeocha, IPMAN’s National Welfare Officer, spoke about the pricing issue. He challenged the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) to look into the complaint.
“If NNPC can sell Dangote products higher than imported products, then it doesn’t make sense. What is the celebration we are having all these while then?” Kekeocha questioned.
The controversy escalated when the NNPCL began distributing petrol from the Dangote Refinery, claiming it was purchased at N898 per litre.
Dangote Refinery has since denied the allegation. The spokesperson for Dangote Refinery, Anthony Chiejina, labelled the NNPCL’s claim as “misleading and mischievous.”
The spokesperson claimed that the refinery sold the product in dollars, yielding significant savings compared to imported fuel.
However, NNPCL has released a detailed breakdown of its pricing, showing that petrol from the Dangote Refinery was being sold for ₦950 per litre in Lagos and up to ₦1,019 per litre in Borno.
Costs of petroleum has triple since the subsidy was removed in May 2023, by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, claiming ending the subsidy regime for oil. The impact of the removal has seen cost of goods and services increasing over 350%, and still has not remedied the energy crisis the country is suffering from.
As Dangote refinery is expected to reach full capacity by the end of the year, IPMAN is of the opinion that competitive pricing that benefits the people should be government’s goal.
