The Dangote Petroleum Refinery has fixed its jet fuel gantry price at ₦1,820 per litre and will begin daily publication of its gantry rates, a move positioned as a direct market intervention to improve transparency and ease pricing pressure in Nigeria’s aviation sector, Petroleumprice.ng gathered.
The development comes at a time when airline operators are warning of an escalating cost crisis driven largely by rising aviation fuel prices. Industry stakeholders say the cost of jet fuel remains the single most critical threat to airline operations, despite recent government relief measures.
Industry stakeholders are now calling for closer scrutiny of fuel marketers, citing a widening disconnect between refinery prices and what airlines pay. The Chairman of Air Peace, Allen Onyema, said recent increases raise concerns about pricing practices, noting that airlines are yet to benefit from relatively cheaper local supply. He warned that sustained cost pressures could disrupt operations if not addressed, adding that marketers should be held accountable for the sharp escalation in prices despite access to lower-cost refinery supply.
According to him, global crude oil prices have risen moderately due to geopolitical tensions, including developments linked to Iran, but aviation fuel prices in Nigeria have increased disproportionately, placing severe strain on operators. “The truth is that marketers must be called to account to explain how prices rose by as much as 300 per cent, even when Dangote’s supply remains the cheapest and some of them source directly from the refinery,” he said.
Against this backdrop, Dangote Refinery’s decision to publish its jet fuel gantry price introduces a new level of visibility into supply-side pricing. Market data indicates that while the refinery is now fixing prices at ₦1,820 per litre, some marketers were selling at levels as high as ₦2,230 per litre, reflecting wide margins within the distribution chain.
By making its pricing public on a daily basis, the refinery is aiming to reduce these disparities, improve price discovery, and curb what industry participants describe as excessive markups by intermediaries.
The move aligns jet fuel pricing with existing disclosure practices for Premium Motor Spirit and Automotive Gas Oil, where gantry prices are regularly communicated to the market. It also signals a more structured approach to pricing in a segment that has historically lacked transparency.
With aviation fuel costs accounting for a significant portion of airline operating expenses, the intervention is expected to provide a clearer benchmark for pricing and potentially moderate extreme price variations across the market.
While the extent of its impact will depend on downstream compliance, the initiative represents a notable shift toward transparency and market stabilisation at a time when the aviation industry is under increasing financial pressure.