Following the reduction of its ex-depot petrol price to N899.50 per litre, from N970, and the resultant slashing of pump prices by some filling stations to N939.50, major marketers have called on Dangote Refinery to prioritise supplying the product through vessels to make the price reduction have more impact in the market.
THISDAY gathered that marketers lifting petrol from Dangote Refinery, have started responding to the reduction of the ex-depot petrol price by the Aliko Dangote-owned refinery by slashing their retail prices by 11.8 per cent to N939.50 per litre, from N1,060 per litre.
Dangote Petroleum Refinery had on Thursday announced the reduction of its ex-depot price, in a move it said was expected to provide much-needed relief for Nigerians ahead of the holiday season.
In a statement signed by the Chief Branding and Communications Officer of Dangote Group, Anthony Chiejina, the company stated: “To alleviate transport costs during this holiday season, Dangote Refinery is offering a holiday discount on PMS. From today, our petrol will be available at N899.50 per litre at our truck loading gantry or SPM.
‘‘Furthermore, for every litre purchased on a cash basis, consumers will have the opportunity to buy another litre on credit, backed by a bank guarantee from Access Bank, First Bank, or Zenith Bank.”
But one of the major oil marketers, who belongs to the Major Energies Marketers Association of Nigeria (MEMAN) told THISDAY that allocating more volumes of the Dangote petrol will further make Nigerians feel the impact of the downward price adjustment by Dangote Refinery.
Speaking with THISDAY on Friday, the MEMAN member said markets would always respond to developments like the reduction of ex-depot prices by Dangote Refinery.
He, however, called on the refinery to prioritise supplying more volumes to the big marketers by selling to them in vessels rather than preferring selling by trucks.
“I think the questions you people should be asking are, are we getting products we want from refineries? What I mean by that is, big time players in the market, they want to buy with vessels in large quantities. Is that available? Because if you are only selling truck by truck, that doesn’t favour somebody who is a large investor in the business and it doesn’t favour the market that is waiting to see sufficient supplies. It only favours those who have one station and are going to buy one or two trucks.
“So, Dangote Refinery should make products available to big players by selling to us in vessels rather than favouring those buying with trucks,” the major marketer appealed.
He further said, “Also, I’m not sure the big people are getting the quantities they want. Even though you hear statements like, I have 500 million litres and whatever. If you have 500 million litres, then why do you not sell to people in large quantities? Why are you more or less insisting that they come truck by truck? Because that’s not what you want.
“So what they want is to be able to buy in large quantities, take to their tanks and sell. But if you are the one now selling to the people they sell to, then it’s not good for the business.
“I think if there is anything I can say at the end of the day, it’s the market’s reaction. So, the market will react to all those things in circumstances.”
Peter Uzoho
Follow us on:
