Depot owners across Nigeria have increased the ex-depot price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), following the rise in global crude oil prices and the Dangote Refinery’s resumption of petrol sales in US dollars.
Checks by DAILY POST showed that major depot operators, including Sahara, Integrated, African Terminal, Emedab and Ranoil, have adjusted their ex-depot prices to between N1,125 and N1,175 per litre, up from the previous range of N1,085 to N1,090 per litre.
The latest adjustment represents an increase of between N30 and N90 per litre, depending on the depot.
The development comes barely hours after the Dangote Refinery resumed the sale of petrol in dollars, fixing its gantry price at $0.779 per litre, equivalent to about N1,075 per litre, after suspending sales in naira.
Earlier, the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, IPMAN, had warned that the refinery’s decision to transact in dollars could trigger another round of fuel price increases unless the Federal Government intervenes.
The association told DAILY POST that marketers would inevitably pass the higher cost of procurement to consumers if the policy remains unchanged.
Meanwhile, the pressure on fuel prices has been compounded by developments in the international oil market.
Brent crude oil climbed to as high as $85 per barrel on Tuesday as the more than four-month conflict involving Iran, the United States and Israel intensified over the past four days.
The renewed geopolitical tensions have also heightened fears of a possible disruption to global oil supplies, amid indications of a fresh move to shut the Strait of Hormuz, one of the world’s most critical oil shipping routes.
The combined effect of higher crude oil prices and the Dangote Refinery’s dollar-denominated sales has continued to fuel concerns over another increase in petrol pump prices across the country in the coming days.
