Petroleum marketers and retailers have indicated that Nigerians should expect further reductions in petrol prices as the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and Dangote Refinery engage in a new price war. On Monday, March 3, NNPC announced new petrol prices of N860 and N880 per litre, with NNPCL retail outlets reflecting the price of N880 per litre. This follows Dangote Refinery’s decision to drop its price to N880 per litre.
The competition between NNPCL and Dangote Refinery is expected to result in even lower prices, benefiting Nigerians struggling with high living costs. Billy Gillis-Harry, National President of the Petroleum Retailers Outlets Owners Association, and Abubakar Maigadi, President of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, both expressed optimism about the impact of this price reduction on Nigerians.
Gillis-Harry described the price war as a “necessary business war” that would lead to significant relief for many Nigerians. Maigadi hailed the developments as the success of deregulation, stressing that price reductions were a natural outcome of increased competition and market deregulation.