Private depot owners have begun raising the loading prices of petroleum products across Nigeria following Dangote Petroleum Refinery's transition to U.S. dollar denominated sales, with Matrix Depot in Port Harcourt increasing the loading price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) by ₦113 per litre and Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) by ₦150 per litre.
An exclusive review by Petroleumprice.ng of Tuesday's Mid-Day Depot Price Report showed widespread upward price adjustments across Lagos, Port Harcourt and Warri, while international crude prices remained elevated. As of 4:00 p.m. WAT, Brent crude traded at $86.03 per barrel, up 3.28 percent, while WTI crude stood at $79.73 per barrel, up 2.03 percent.
The increases came less than 24 hours after Dangote Refinery commenced dollar based sales of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) and Aviation Turbine Kerosene (ATK) for both gantry and coastal transactions.
Industry sources attributed the policy shift to persistent market instability, foreign exchange exposure and an imbalance between the refinery's crude procurement and product sales. According to the sources, a larger share of crude oil supplied to the refinery by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) is now paid for in U.S. dollars, while a significant volume of refined products has continued to be sold in naira, increasing the refinery's foreign exchange exposure.
The latest depot data indicates that marketers have begun repricing products to reflect anticipated replacement costs under the new payment structure.
In Lagos, African Terminal, Ascon, Integrated and Sahara each increased the loading price of petrol from ₦1,090 to ₦1,120 per litre, representing a ₦30 increase. On the diesel side, African Terminal raised its price from ₦1,430 to ₦1,500 per litre, a ₦70 increase. Ibachem and Ibeto each adjusted prices from ₦1,445 to ₦1,500 per litre, representing ₦55 increases, while Wosbab increased its loading price from ₦1,450 to ₦1,510 per litre, a ₦60 increase.
Port Harcourt recorded the sharpest adjustments of the day. Matrix Depot raised the loading price of petrol from ₦1,137 to ₦1,250 per litre, representing a ₦113 increase, while diesel climbed from ₦1,500 to ₦1,650 per litre, an increase of ₦150 per litre.
In Warri, Matrix increased its petrol loading price from ₦1,120 to ₦1,230 per litre, a ₦110 increase. Optima raised its price from ₦1,117 to ₦1,141 per litre, adding ₦24 per litre, while Rain Oil increased PMS from ₦1,130 to ₦1,170 per litre, representing a ₦40 increase.
Diesel prices in Warri also moved higher. NIPCO raised its loading price from ₦1,485 to ₦1,571 per litre, an ₦86 increase. Rain Oil increased its price from ₦1,485 to ₦1,560 per litre, representing a ₦75 increase, while Prudent adjusted its diesel price from ₦1,540 to ₦1,550 per litre, a ₦10 increase.
Although Dangote Petroleum Refinery has not released revised PMS or AGO loading prices since introducing the dollar based payment policy, the refinery's decision has already begun influencing pricing across the downstream market.
The latest adjustments represent the first broad market response to the refinery's new sales policy and indicate that depot owners and marketers are beginning to factor higher replacement costs into their pricing. Industry participants are now watching closely to see whether the increases at the depot level will be transmitted to retail pump prices in the coming days