Following the hike in the cost of petrol produced by the Dangote Petrochemical Refinery, the pump prices of the product are now between ₦1,050 and ₦1,150/litre, depending on the area of purchase.
Naijaonpoint reports that the Dangote Refinery had raised its PMS from ₦899/litre to ₦955/litre at its loading gantry.
In an email statement sent to its customers, the refinery said its refined products would now be priced at the new cost.
It noted that marketers buying between two million and 4.99 million litres would now buy at ₦955/litre, while five million litres and above would buy at ₦950/litre.
The amount marks an increase of ₦55.5 or 6.17 per cent from ₦899.50/litre announced as a holiday discount for Nigerians last December.
Dealers confirmed that PMS prices would continue to rise since crude oil, a major component of fuel production, has been on the upward swing lately.
Findings carried out by Punch showed that private depots, despite having old stocks, increased their loading costs to ₦970 in Lagos and ₦1,000 in Calabar.
A breakdown analysing petrol price movements at loading depots after the announcement of the new price showed that Sahara depot increased its loading price by ₦20 to ₦970/litre from ₦950/litre on Thursday.
Pinnacle Depot increased its price to ₦970 from ₦921, while Wosbab Depot made a similar change, increasing its price to ₦965 from the ₦940 it sold a litre of petrol on Thursday.
NIPCO increased its loading costs by ₦30 to ₦980 from ₦950 on Thursday.
Also, a private depot, Rainoil, increased its loading costs to ₦970 from ₦950. A private depot, Alkanes, in Calabar, asked retailers to pay ₦1,000/litre to receive products.
Zone 4 and Mainland depots increased their loading costs to ₦1,005/litre from ₦985, which sold products on Thursday.
Oil marketers operating under the auspices of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria projected a steep increase in the retail cost of petrol, stressing it could hit ₦1,100/litre in Lagos and neighbouring states.
IPMAN also said petrol customers in the Federal Capital Territory might pay ₦1,150 for a litre.
The IPMAN National Publicity Secretary, Chinedu Ukadike, said the product would now trade for more than ₦1,000/litre, especially in hinterlands nationwide.
He stressed that the new change was due to the recent surge in the price of crude oil globally.
Ukadike said, “Yes, Dangote has increased its price to N955. This is only because of the increase in Brent crude. Once it increases, the domestic production cost will also increase.
“Nigerians will likely pay over N1,150 at faraway locations, while locations close to the depot will pay N1,100. This is because we will add about N50 logistics costs. Currently, ex-depot prices have increased to N980.
“This change is immediate because crude oil prices, too, are immediate. The refinery told us it has taken effect today, which means prices have increased already. Deregulation in this sector means price will be controlled by forces of demand and supply.
“So, if the force of supply says Brent crude has increased, it means domestic costs will also change. It is no longer funny now. Even marketers are affected by this up-and-down dwindling of prices. It affects our business.”