The Federal Government of Nigeria has announced July 23 and 24, 2025, as the official dates for a national stakeholder summit on petrol pricing and downstream sector reforms.
The summit aims to address mounting concerns from marketers, retailers, and consumers over fuel pricing, supply dynamics, and the broader implications of Nigeria’s post-subsidy regime.
The event, organized by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), is expected to bring together key industry players, including marketers, refiners, regulators, and policymakers.
“We are engaging stakeholders at our forum, where we address the issues and proffer solutions. At the latter part of this month, exactly on July 23 to 24, a two-day event, we will be talking about petrol pricing,” said Francis Ogaree, Executive Director of Hydrocarbon Processing Plants, Installation and Transportation Infrastructure at NMDPRA.
Calls for fair pricing and transparency intensify
The summit comes in response to growing agitation from downstream stakeholders, particularly independent marketers and retail outlet owners, who are calling for greater transparency and stability in petrol pricing.
Billy Gillis-Harry, President of the Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN), has been vocal about the need for a consistent pricing framework, especially in light of recent price drops by Dangote Refinery, which left many retailers exposed after purchasing fuel at higher rates.
“We advocate for mechanisms to analyse price fluctuations and ensure they don’t negatively impact the industry,” Gillis-Harry stated.
Similarly, the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) recently criticized the current deregulated pricing system.
The union allege exploitation by marketers and insist that pump prices should be adjusted to reflect market realities—between N700 and N750 per litre.
Refining capacity and feedstock security in focus
During the recently concluded 24th Nigeria Oil and Gas (NOG) Energy Week, Ogaree stressed that beyond pricing, Nigeria’s downstream market must tackle feedstock security.
He revealed that 10 refineries, including three NNPC-operated plants, the 650,000bpd Dangote refinery, and six modular refineries, are either operational or near-operational.
“We need about 1,124,000 barrels per day to keep all operational and planned refineries running. If our crude production doesn’t scale up, it will be difficult to meet demand,” Ogaree warned.
The NMDPRA has issued 47 licenses for new refining projects, many of which are expected to come online by 2026, placing increased pressure on domestic crude supply.
How Nigeria got here
The enactment of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021 and the removal of fuel subsidies in mid-2023 has shifted the paradigm in Nigeria’s downstream petroleum sector.
These reforms, decades in the making, are reshaping the regulatory landscape, market dynamics, and investment profile of the sector.
For years, Nigeria subsidized petrol under a system that drained public finances and distorted fuel pricing.
In June 2023, the government officially withdrew this subsidy, marking the full deregulation of petrol, Nigeria’s main transport fuel.
Fuel prices are now determined by market forces, but the nation’s biggest refiner Dangote has leveraged the opportunity to cause swings in the fuel market.
The plant drops fuel prices when oil prices fall and vice versa, putting pressure on fuel importers who bank on the margin between landing costs and pump prices to market their products.
Now, Aliko Dangote, the billionaire owner of the mega refinery is threatening to take the game to another level. He says fuel from his plant will be delivered, beginning from next month, cost-free to big customers who will order at least 500,000 litres at once.
According to reports, marketers have held various impromptu meetings across the country to deliberate on the next step as Dangote steps into the scene. And the planned petrol pricing summit is just one of those.