Reports indicate that petrol prices have surged to between N930 and N970 per litre in parts of Lagos and its outskirts, up from the previous price of N865 per litre. The increase, which took effect on Saturday evening, was confirmed by fuel attendants who stated they had earlier sold at N865 per litre before receiving instructions to adjust the price.
This development follows oil marketers’ warnings about rising landing costs of imported petrol, which reportedly jumped by N88 per litre within a week. Nairametrics can confirm that an AP filling station on Admiralty Road in Lekki Phase 1 was selling petrol at N930 per litre, while other outlets in Lagos priced it between N930 and N935 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.
There are also unconfirmed reports that NNPC has allocated large volumes of crude oil to its foreign creditors to settle outstanding loans, potentially limiting the availability of crude for local refineries. This has, in turn, enabled private depot owners to increase prices, further straining fuel supply in the domestic market.
