NewStats: 3,262,869 , 8,178,423 topics. Date: Tuesday, 03 June 2025 at 09:07 PM 167248

Experts have indicated that the commencement of production at the Dangote Petroleum Refinery may not lead to a substantial decrease in petrol and diesel prices.

Despite the refinery’s strategic location in Lagos, Nigeria, the input costs for its operations are heavily import-dependent, and the volatility of foreign exchange rates is expected to hinder any significant price reductions for these commodities.

This perspective was shared by Hector Igbikiowubo, Publisher of Sweet Crude Reports, and Ugodre Obi-Chukwu, Founder of Nairametrics, during an appearance on “Inside Sources with Laolu Akande,” a socio-political program aired on Channels Television on Friday.

Both Igbikiowubo and Obi-Chukwu praised Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest man, for overcoming numerous challenges to realize his vision of building a functional refinery.

They stressed that Dangote’s achievement underscores the Federal Government’s lack of excuses for not revitalizing Nigeria’s four dormant refineries and urged the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited to increase crude supply to the Dangote refinery.

Recently, Dangote announced that his refinery would continue to import 24 million barrels of West Texas Intermediate crude due to insufficient local crude production and supply by the NNPC.

The experts noted that while the private refinery might not solve all of Nigeria’s energy security needs, its operations would significantly improve the availability of petrol products in the country.

Igbikiowubo stated, “The Dangote Refinery cannot solve the problem because the Dangote Refinery will continue to pay for crude oil in USD (United States Dollar).

The question now is how come the NNPC isn’t allotting all of its 445,000 barrels per day to the Dangote Refinery for refining? Why is it convenient to export crude oil when you have a facility like the Dangote Refinery up and running? You make more money if you export refined petroleum products than if you export crude oil.”

Obi-Chukwu concurred, noting that the operational costs of the Dangote Refinery, dominated by the US dollar, might not translate into lower costs for end consumers.

He explained, “As much as the refinery is local, most of the input cost for that refinery is still going to be imported. Whether it is the personnel that will service the refinery.


“Whether it is the spare parts that will be changed and serviced. Even the crude itself is also being imported. A lot of the breakdown of the cost still has foreign components in there.

“So, it is quite unlikely that you might see a substantial amount of savings to the end consumers. Nevertheless, even if we get 10% savings, it is still better than what we currently have.”

The refinery, which began operations last December with a capacity of 350,000 barrels per day, aims to reach its full capacity of 650,000 barrels per day by the end of the year.

It has started supplying diesel and aviation fuel to marketers in the country, with petrol supply expected to commence by mid-July.

The experts stated that, while the Dangote Refinery is operational, the country’s four refineries, which are located in three different locations across the country, should be brought online to ensure the country’s energy security.

The four dilapidated state-owned refineries are located up north in Kaduna, with three units in the southern region – Port Harcourt and Warri.

Despite billions of naira spent on turnaround maintenance, attempts to get them working over the last two decades have failed.

The newspaper publishers believe that the Bola Tinubu istration should do everything in its power to make the state-owned refineries operational.

Igbikiowubo said, “The essence of having the NNPC refineries working is to guarantee energy security for the Nigerian state.”

He said though the NNPC has about 20% stakes in the Dangote Refinery, the refinery does not belong to the Nigerian state.

“We should have a coherent energy security in place,” he said. “If you have refineries, those refineries should work.

Igbikiowubo said privatisation of the state-owned refineries does not guarantee energy security as the private company is interested in profit-making for its shareholders and not necessarily ensuring that the populace gets the commodities easily and at cheap rates.

“Where is NITEL today? It was privatised. Where is Daily Times today? It was privatised. We need to be able. The money sunk into the refineries, what happened to them?”Igbikiowubo asked.

“Last year, the petroleum minister granted an interview that the Port Harcourt Refinery would be up by December. This is June and nothing has happened. He is not being held to .”

He said subsidy removal should be predicated on local refining and not import-dependent products controlled by the vagaries of foreign exchange.

“You have a group of persons who are benefiting with the status quo and they will do everything to ensure the status quo remains,” said the Sweet Crude Reports publisher.

The publisher of Nairametrics posited that privatisation can work – and it has worked before in other sectors of the country – if done the right way.

“We’ve practiced one model before, the government trying to run the refineries. It hasn’t worked. What we see now is funds being misappropriated from the very limited funding space that we have as a country and these funds are being squandered. So, there is no point. The same thing with the Ajaokuta Steel.

“You have to privatise properly with a clear mandate and key performance indicators, including public list on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE),” he said.

He urged the government to set the right policies to allow private businesses to flourish in the country.

https://tribuneonlineng.com/why-petrol-diesel-prices-may-not-drop-despite-dangote-refinery-experts/

hmmm

Experts raised valid points and these are most likely to happen but I still trust expert FG analysis and Dangotes realistic projection on this


Even he already weighed all this before making that July statement

Never excited about economic forecasts in Nigeria especially the ones that involve price crash, until I see with my eyes.

Nigerians, lift up your heads because your redemption is not nigh yet. Government refineries flopped. The Dangote refinery will still be another monopoly as it has to maximize profits of heavy investment.

Normally the price would rip but Tinubu in his usual drive to make sure you the poor suffer more he will keep the prices high and they are trying to justify it .

But poor Nigerians will rather sit down and complain or pray 🤣
Or they go on Twitter and rant

The poor in Nigeria are very stupid. Stop giving them charity. The fact I sit down and not protest is simply because I can afford it but you who can't afford food why don't you protest? Or are you waiting for me to start protest for you? Stupid fellows.


Keep waiting for me o. Stupid people. Me I don't give shishi. Una never ready.

Una go suffer till una die if you don't rise up.

The poor keep waiting for hand outs. Even for their own rights they still want handouts

Until the poor unite and protest let them keep suffering.
You see them all over Nairaland begging ,old men and women in their forties and fifties begging like mad people, instead of forming protest groups..

Useless people

Gees


EBIN PAWA ooo !!!


WTH MAN!

Drop ke? Does this govt mean well for Nigerians before?

But desiel dropped already

Do you need to be an expert to know this. Experts work don dey dey too easy this days.

DevilsEqual:
Experts raised valid points and these are most likely to happen but I still trust expert FG analysis and Dangotes realistic projection on this


Even he already weighed all this before making that July statement

prices will keep going up. Nothing goes down in Nigeria

Please keep your expertise to yourself, this was not what Ronus have been telling us even on this tribalised platform for months.
Igbos told us plainly that Dangote is a businessman and not a charity organisation and they are not expecting much from his refinery, perhaps they are the real experts

Last month they told you it will drop..today experts says otherwise.. hehe.. BATIDIOTS
propagandist

Hmmmm..... Yeye Experts.

.

So las las we are all going to depend on dangote refinery as a nation.
I thought tinubu said with the removal of fuel subsidy, he has saved enough to fix all our refineries?

Lol. The more yhu look, the less yhu see

APC propaganda machine failing gradually. Reality will be done on Nigerians by the time the agbado drug man is done with Nigeria

In other words, there is no hope anywhere and whoever talking about renewed hope is a liar. Is that what this means Op?

Bb

This is not unexpected. If he buys crude in USD, what price are we expecting?

Only mumu people believe that Nigeria will work with this structure

When the roll is called up yonder, will you be there? So many think when a man draws his last breath that’s all? I’m sorry that’s not all.

Man was designed as a service entity; I beseech you this day, choose who you will serve. I choose Jesus Christ, after this age is past, God will know those who were intimate with him.

Surrender to Jesus Christ today. He alone has the capacity to both save and deliver even to the uttermost.

Dpharisee:
Please keep your expertise to yourself, this was not what Ronus have been telling us even on this tribalised platform for months.
Igbos told us plainly that Dangote is a businessman and not a charity organisation and they are not expecting much from his refinery, perhaps they are the real experts

honestly its common sense to know.

Oga wetin we the poor do you, no forget- the Rich also Cry...

CountinBlessins:
Normally the price would rip but Tinubu in his usual drive to make sure you the poor suffer more he will keep the prices high and they are trying to justify it .

But poor Nigerians will rather sit down and complain or pray 🤣
Or they go on Twitter and rant

The poor in Nigeria are very stupid. Stop giving them charity. The fact I sit down and not protest is simply because I can afford it but you who can't afford food why don't you protest? Or are you waiting for me to start protest for you? Stupid fellows.


Keep waiting for me o. Stupid people. Me I don't give shishi. Una never ready.

Una go suffer till una die if you don't rise up.

The poor keep waiting for hand outs. Even for their own rights they still want handouts

Until the poor unite and protest let them keep suffering.
You see them all over Nairaland begging ,old men and women in their forties and fifties begging like mad people, instead of forming protest groups..

Useless people

Diesel is still 1500 in warri. Dangote is one of the problems we have in this country.

CountinBlessins:
Normally the price would rip but Tinubu in his usual drive to make sure you the poor suffer more he will keep the prices high and they are trying to justify it .

But poor Nigerians will rather sit down and complain or pray 🤣
Or they go on Twitter and rant

The poor in Nigeria are very stupid. Stop giving them charity. The fact I sit down and not protest is simply because I can afford it but you who can't afford food why don't you protest? Or are you waiting for me to start protest for you? Stupid fellows.


Keep waiting for me o. Stupid people. Me I don't give shishi. Una never ready.

Una go suffer till una die if you don't rise up.

The poor keep waiting for hand outs. Even for their own rights they still want handouts

Until the poor unite and protest let them keep suffering.
You see them all over Nairaland begging ,old men and women in their forties and fifties begging like mad people, instead of forming protest groups..

Useless people

Your comment is just the truth but Nigerians don't like the truth. They like people that deceive them with lies. There is this man across the road in my area, he rant a lot but never left his compound anytime they are protesting or people are trying to face the government to claim their right but the yeye man will be complaining everyday and abusing people for not helping him. We are just the problem of ourselves

You guys are already settling the pace for dangote to increase fuel products from his refinery. Using media propaganda to drive price

Nigerian journalists are lazy trash bin. All they do is spin and recycle article for their dumb readers to swallow