Between Monday, March 17, and Sunday, March 23, seven vessels carrying imported Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), commonly known as petrol, are scheduled to dock at various Nigerian seaports. These vessels will collectively deliver 115,000 metric tonnes of PMS, equivalent to approximately 154.22 million litres, in a bid to boost the country’s fuel supply.
According to data from the Nigerian Port Authority (NPA), the shipments will be distributed across three major seaports—Tincan and Lekki in Lagos, and Calabar in Cross River State. This import surge follows an exclusive report by The PUNCH, revealing that the landing cost of imported PMS has decreased to N797 per litre.
This importation surge comes amid a standoff over the Naira-for-Crude deal, which led to Dangote Petroleum Refinery halting sales in naira. Industry insiders suggest that the suspension of this deal is part of an ongoing effort to undermine the Dangote refinery, whose competitive pricing on petrol has angered some stakeholders.
Eche Idoko, National Publicity Secretary of the Crude Oil Refinery-owners Association of Nigeria, criticized the suspension, claiming it undermines efforts to ensure energy security and supports the return of full petrol importation, despite rising domestic refining capacity.
Recent reports from the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority indicate that the country’s three operational refineries only meet less than half of the nation’s daily petrol demand, with the remainder filled by imports.
The vessels are expected to deliver their cargo at various times. For instance, the first shipment arrived on March 17, with several others scheduled to follow throughout the week. Importantly, depot owners have increased the loading cost for petrol, raising prices across several depots, including Rainoil and Pinnacle, which have seen price hikes to N860 per litre.
This development highlights the ongoing challenges in Nigeria’s petroleum sector, where the balance between local refining and imports remains precarious.
