Fuel Shock Looms: Marketers Announce Pump Price Hike as Dangote Refinery Halts Petrol Sales in Naira

A fresh wave of fuel crisis is set to hit Nigerians as the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) has declared an imminent hike in petrol pump prices following the suspension of Naira-based petrol sales by the Dangote Petroleum Refinery.

Confirming the development in an exclusive interview with DAILY POST on Saturday, IPMAN National President, Abubakar Maigandi, said the decision by Africa’s largest refinery could trigger nationwide price adjustments as early as Monday, September 29, 2025.

According to him, Dangote Refinery—whose 650,000-barrel-per-day facility is Nigeria’s hope for energy independence—formally notified marketers via email on Friday of its suspension of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) sales in Naira, effective Sunday, September 28, 2025.

“The implication is clear: petrol prices will rise. Our members will have no choice but to adjust the pump price upwards. Unless the Federal Government urgently addresses the Naira-for-crude allocation with Dangote Refinery, Nigerians should brace for higher fuel costs by Monday,” Maigandi warned.

Currently, PMS sells between N865 and N910 per litre in Lagos and Abuja. However, with the refinery’s suspension of Naira-denominated transactions, marketers say the price could surge significantly, stoking fears of another round of economic hardship for citizens already grappling with inflation and rising living costs.

This comes on the heels of DAILY POST’s earlier report that Nigerians were at risk of a new fuel price crisis after Dangote Refinery announced the exhaustion of its crude-for-Naira allocation—a special arrangement brokered with the Federal Government in October 2024 to stabilize production costs and ensure cheaper fuel supply.

In April 2025, the Federal Government had assured that the initiative would continue indefinitely to shield Nigerians from volatile global oil prices. But with Dangote Refinery’s sudden pullout, doubts now hang over that pledge.

To further complicate matters, the refinery is also battling a high-profile industrial dispute with the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) following the controversial sack of 800 workers, a crisis that has already raised questions about the facility’s internal stability.

As the standoff intensifies, industry analysts warn that the government’s next move will determine whether Nigerians face another painful escalation in fuel prices—or enjoy a reprieve from the looming crisis.