In a recent press release, Dangote Refinery has firmly rebutted claims by the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Petroleum Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN), and other groups suggesting that they could import Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) at rates lower than Dangote’s current prices.
Anthony Chiejina, Group Chief Branding and Communications Officer at Dangote Refinery, described these claims as “misinformation,” emphasizing that the refinery benchmarks its prices against international standards to maintain competitive pricing in line with global market rates. According to Chiejina, any association claiming to import PMS at a significantly lower price is likely cutting corners on quality, risking public health and vehicle durability in Nigeria.
“If anyone claims they can land PMS at a price cheaper than what we are selling, then they are importing substandard products and conniving with international traders to dump low-quality products into the country, without concern for the health of Nigerians or the longevity of their vehicles,” the statement read. Chiejina added that the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) currently lacks the laboratory facilities necessary to screen these products for quality before they enter the Nigerian market.
Highlighting its own pricing structure, Dangote Refinery noted that, following deregulation, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) initially set a benchmark, selling PMS to domestic marketers at N971 per liter for marine transport and N990 per liter for road transport. In response, Dangote Refinery took a competitive step by adjusting its prices to N960 per liter for marine sales while maintaining the N990 rate for road-bound sales.
Chiejina further stated that the Dangote Refinery had commenced sales with these rates, even without confirmed exchange rates for the crude oil purchased. This flexibility, he suggested, was a testament to the refinery’s commitment to providing high-quality PMS at fair prices to Nigerian consumers.
The press release also alleged that an international trading company has recently leased a depot facility adjacent to the Dangote Refinery. This depot, Chiejina warned, may be used to blend and market lower-grade petroleum products, posing a threat to the growth of Nigeria’s domestic refining industry. “This is detrimental to the growth of domestic refining in Nigeria,” Chiejina stated, adding that other nations like the United States and the European Union routinely impose tariffs to safeguard local industries.
Calling on the Nigerian public to be wary of “deliberate disinformation,” the Dangote Group reiterated its commitment to producing high-quality, domestically refined petroleum products. “We continue with our determination to provide affordable, good-quality, domestically refined petroleum products in Nigeria,” Chiejina concluded, urging consumers to see beyond what he described as “disinformation by agents of people who prefer for us to continue to export jobs and import poverty.”
Thediscovererng.com reports that this statement from Dangote Refinery comes amid increasing competition within Nigeria’s PMS supply sector, where local refiners and importers are vying to gain the upper hand following Nigeria’s recent deregulation of its oil and gas sector.
