Dangote Refinery discontinues naira payments, moves to dollar pricing
Naira-for-crude regime concludes as Dangote entirely dollarizes pricing
Dangote Petroleum Refinery has discontinued the sale of refined petroleum products in naira, effective July 13, 2026, bringing an end to the “naira-for-crude” arrangement that had been in place since October 2024.
Under the new pricing structure, the refinery now sells all products exclusively in United States dollars at ex-depot. Petrol (PMS) is priced at $0.779 per litre, diesel (AGO) at $1.087 per litre, and aviation fuel (Jet A1) at $0.942 per litre.
The naira-for-crude policy, introduced in October 2024, had allowed the refinery to receive crude oil from the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) in naira, with refined products in turn sold locally in the domestic currency.
The arrangement was designed to ease pressure on Nigeria’s foreign exchange market and support local currency stability in the downstream sector.
However, industry sources say the arrangement had become financially untenable for the refinery. Dangote has increasingly been receiving a larger share of its crude supply from NNPCL under dollar-denominated deals, even as it continues to sell finished products in naira.
This created a currency mismatch, with the refinery absorbing dollar-based input costs while earning naira-based revenue from sales.
The shift to full dollar pricing is expected to eliminate that mismatch, aligning the refinery’s revenue currency with its cost structure.
Analysts have warned that the change carries direct implications for pump prices. With refined products now priced in dollars, the cost of petrol, diesel, and aviation fuel at the pump will move in tandem with fluctuations in the naira-dollar exchange rate. Should the naira depreciate further, consumers could see fuel prices rise correspondingly, even in the absence of any change in global crude prices.
The development marks a significant shift in Nigeria’s downstream petroleum pricing framework, less than two years after the naira-for-crude policy was introduced as part of efforts to stabilise fuel supply and reduce foreign exchange demand for fuel imports.
