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Queues at MRS filling stations are growing longer by the day as motorists seek to buy petrol produced by the Dangote refinery at N739 per litre.

From Lagos Island to the mainland, The PUNCH observed that MRS filling stations were crowded with vehicles waiting to buy fuel, while other filling stations appeared largely deserted.

In many locations across Lagos, the queues spilled onto major roads, causing traffic congestion and affecting free vehicular movement at a time when Nigerians were travelling for the Yuletide season.

It was observed that many stations struggling for customers have refused to lower their pump prices below N800 per litre, forcing Nigerians to look for cheaper alternatives.

“Those filling stations will only see customers if there are no MRS filling stations around them, but the MRS filling stations are almost everywhere these days. Many of the dead filling stations we used to know are operating as MRS. This has made the situation very dicey for filling stations,” a marketer said anonymously.

Our correspondent reports that aside from MRS, other known Dangote partners such as Heyden and AP have yet to reduce prices to N739 per litre. Checks showed that these stations were selling petrol at prices ranging from N800 to N890 per litre, depending on location.

In areas with MRS filling stations, competing outlets were compelled to slash prices to remain competitive in the deregulated fuel market. Where there are no MRS stations, fuel sellers said they would continue to sell at old prices pending the arrival of new stocks purchased at N699 per litre.

On December 12, the Dangote refinery surprised depot owners and marketers when it slashed the gantry price of petrol by N129, from N828 to N699 per litre.

During a recent press briefing, the President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, said he had information that some marketers planned to keep pump prices high despite the reduction.

Consequently, Dangote vowed to enforce the new pricing regime, with MRS selling petrol at N739 per litre from last week Tuesday.

The PUNCH earlier reported that as more MRS filling stations in Lagos and Ogun states began dispensing Dangote refinery petrol at N739 per litre, motorists started boycotting outlets selling at higher prices.

“We are going to use whatever resources we have to make sure that we crash the price down. For this December and January, we don’t want people to sell petrol for more than N740 nationwide. Those who want to keep the price high to sabotage the government, we will fight as much as we can to make sure that these prices are down. If you have money to come and buy, you can pick up petrol at N699,” Aliko Dangote said.

Speaking with our correspondent, the spokesperson of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Chinedu Ukadike, said marketers who refused to reduce prices would lose customers as bank interest charges accumulate.

“We are in a situation where competition can be determined by price. Patronage will be determined by pricing. Nobody is against you; nobody is regulating you. You will regulate yourself. The market will regulate itself. The time has gone when people were queuing at NNPC filling stations. Wherever the fuel is cheap, that is where the marketers go. So, we are in a price war. Demand and supply determine the price.

“Once Dangote has reduced the gantry price to N699, marketers will dive towards competitive pricing whereby they can retain their numerous customers; if not, interest from banks would be ‘eating’ your capital,” Ukadike said.

However, major oil marketers insist that the Dangote refinery, despite recent sharp price reductions and increasing domestic output, cannot solely meet Nigeria’s petrol supply needs, warning that reliance on a single source is already creating challenges in the downstream sector.

The Executive Secretary of the Major Energies Marketers Association of Nigeria, Clement Isong, said all MEMAN members currently purchase petrol from the Dangote refinery but stressed that supply constraints, logistics challenges and timing issues make it impractical for the refinery to be Nigeria’s sole source of supply.

Isong noted that the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority had planned well for the Yuletide season by granting import licences, a move which the Dangote refinery said left its fuel unsold in storage tanks.

He explained that many marketers were deliberately avoiding large-volume purchases due to the risk of sudden price crashes that could wipe out margins.

“There’s a glut. There are excess products in the country. And there will continue to be imported products coming in. The authority planned well for the season; it is true that there are products everywhere. It’s just that you need to be able to buy at a good price for your station. But there are excess products in the system.

“But people are being careful because of the price. Nobody buys in large volumes. So, you know, there’s an advantage to volume purchase, to bulk purchase. The bigger you buy, the lower your unit cost. But if you buy in bulk now and the price crashes, then the bigger the amount of money you lose,” he warned.

Amid the intense competition, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited also reduced petrol prices from N875 to between N825 and N840 per litre, depending on location. The state-owned company was one of the biggest petrol importers in November, according to a report by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority.

In the NMDPRA fact sheet, the NNPC, described as the supplier of last resort, said it imported petrol in November to build inventory and guarantee supply during the peak demand period.

However, at a landing cost of about N828 per litre, according to MEMAN, importers such as the NNPC would struggle to compete with Dangote’s N739 per litre pump price, forcing them to sell below cost.

Recall that the NNPC was previously the sole importer of petrol due to subsidies. With the commencement of petrol production by the Dangote refinery a year ago, the sector became fully deregulated, leading to the disappearance of queues at NNPC stations that were once caused by price differentials.

It was gathered that many NNPC filling stations in Lagos are now struggling to attract customers, as motorists opt for cheaper fuel elsewhere.

Meanwhile, as marketers lament losses running into billions of naira, Dangote said he was also losing money. Findings by The PUNCH showed that petrol importers risk losing as much as N100bn monthly following the refinery’s reduction in gantry prices.

At the same time, the refinery itself is projected to lose about N90bn monthly as a direct result of the price cut, highlighting the intensity of competition reshaping Nigeria’s downstream oil market.

Meanwhile, Dangote has announced the launch of a dedicated hotline for Nigerians to report any MRS Oil Nigeria Plc filling station selling petrol above the approved pump price of N739 per litre, warning consumers against buying ‘expensive’ petrol.

The refinery also warned marketers against creating artificial scarcity, stating that it is supplying up to 50 million litres of petrol daily.

In a statement, the refinery said the initiative underscored its commitment to transparency, affordability and consumer protection in the downstream petroleum market.

“The hotline number 0800123 5264 is now active nationwide, enabling consumers to promptly report violations and help maintain fair pricing across over 2,000 MRS stations. This measure follows the refinery’s recent commencement of nationwide PMS sales at N739 per litre, a strategic intervention aimed at stabilising fuel prices and easing the financial burden on Nigerians during the festive season,” the statement said.

The Dangote refinery reiterated its mission to deliver affordable, high-quality fuel while safeguarding national economic interests, pledging to continue supplying 50 million litres daily.

“We encourage Nigerians to avoid purchasing PMS at inflated prices when locally refined fuel is available at N739 per litre. Report any MRS station selling above this price by calling our hotline. Together, we can ensure that the benefits of this price reduction reach every consumer,” the statement added.

The queues at MRS filling stations are expected to ease as more outlets cut prices.

Credit: PUNCH