Nigerian businessman and industrialist Aliko Dangote, in an interview with Francine Lacqua revealed that petroleum prices from his refinery is way cheaper than what Nigerian National Petroleum Cooperation Limited (NNPCL) has announced to the general populace. The chairman and CEO of Dangote group while speaking in an interview with Bloomberg Television interview in New York refuted that the NNPCL announcement of N898 per liter from Dangote refinery was not the actual price. The industrialist explained that the last purchase from NNPCL was based on international pricing faulting the pricing announcement. In his words: “NNPC bought from us on September 15, 2024 at the international price, while also importing around 800 metric tons of gasoline. The gasoline they purchased from us was cheaper than what they imported. “So, when NNPC announced our petrol price at N898 through their spokesman, I’m not sure if it was authorized, but it wasn’t the actual price. It may reflect their costs, but they included profit and other factors into the pricing.” Dangote added. He as well stressed during the interview that petrol from his refinery is cheaper than imported petrol stating that companies are still negotiating with the federal government to reach an agreement on petrol pricing and energy security. “What they should do is sell at a basket price, or, if they want to remove the subsidy, they should do so and make an official announcement, which would be fine. “For the imported gasoline, no announcement was made, but I can tell you that ours was about 15% to 20% cheaper than what NNPC spent on importation. “We have already reached an agreement to supply about 12 million barrels of crude oil in Naira. Starting this October 2024, we will produce approximately 309 barrels per day of gasoline, diesel, and aviation fuel for resale to Nigerians, while the surplus will be exported. “Once we begin operations, 50% of our petrol stations that have been out of service will become operational again. This will reduce the cost of ships idling around neighboring countries, and we will save over $1 billion in demurrage fees alone.” Dangote Refinery accuses oil marketers of low patronage due to low pricing strategies on its product sales, thereby it has decided to export its products instead.
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