Reports suggest that petrol prices have risen to between N930 and N970 per litre in various parts of Lagos and its outskirts, up from the previous rate of N865 per litre. The price hike, which took effect on Saturday evening, was confirmed by fuel attendants who noted that they had initially sold at N865 per litre before being instructed to increase the price.
This comes after warnings from oil marketers about the growing landing prices of imported petrol, which reportedly increased by N88 per litre in just one week. While other establishments in Lagos priced petrol between N930 and N935 per litre, Nairametrics can verify that an AP filling station on Admiralty Road in Lekki Phase 1 was selling it for N930 per litre.
Similarly, fuel stations in Abuja and Magboro, Ogun State, have raised prices to between N960 and N970 per litre. This marks the first major petrol price increase in 2025, following a series of price reductions earlier in the year amid competition between the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited and Dangote Refinery.
On March 19, 2025, Dangote Refinery announced it would temporarily halt domestic petrol supply in naira due to the suspension of the naira-for-crude arrangement by NNPC. The refinery cited the need to avoid a mismatch between its sales proceeds and crude purchase obligations, which are denominated in U.S. dollars.
However, the NNPC clarified that the naira-for-crude deal was originally structured as a six-month agreement, which expired at the end of March 2025. The Group Chief Corporate Communications Officer, Olufemi Soneye, stated that NNPC had supplied Dangote Refinery with over 48 million barrels of crude since October 2024, and discussions were ongoing to renew the arrangement.
Meanwhile, oil marketers under the Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN) have opposed Dangote Refinery’s decision to sell refined petroleum products in dollars. PETROAN’s National President, Billy Gillis-Harry, urged the Federal Government to intervene, warning that such a move could create economic strain, fuel scarcity, and inflationary pressure.
Additionally, there are unverified rumours that NNPC has sent out significant amounts of crude oil to its overseas creditors in order to pay off existing debts, which would have reduced the amount of crude available for regional refineries. As a result, private depot owners have been allowed to raise prices, further taxing the domestic fuel supply.
