The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has strongly condemned the latest petrol price increase by the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, questioning the rationale for the hike amid rising Nigerian crude production and expanded domestic refining capacity.
NLC spokesperson, Benson Upah, described the latest adjustment as “avoidable and unacceptable,” arguing that declining international crude prices should make further increases difficult to justify.
The refinery on Saturday raised its gantry price by N65 per litre, from N1,200 to N1,265, barely three days after moving it from N1,185 to N1,200. It was the refinery’s third adjustment in eight days, bringing the cumulative increase to N100, representing an 8.6 per cent rise.
The ripple effect is already being felt across the downstream market. Petrol prices have reportedly climbed to about N1,310 per litre in parts of Lagos and Ogun, while some locations in northern Nigeria are recording N1,350 and above, with prices in certain areas approaching N1,400.
Beyond the immediate impact on motorists, the development threatens to deepen pressure on households, transport operators, farmers and businesses as higher fuel costs translate into increased transportation, logistics, production and distribution expenses.
At the centre of the renewed controversy is the apparent contradiction between Nigeria’s growing crude output and its continued exposure to petrol price volatility.
Nigeria’s crude production reportedly averaged 1.72 million barrels per day in the second quarter of 2026, up from 1.55 million barrels per day in the first quarter, while the Dangote refinery has a nameplate capacity of approximately 650,000 barrels per day.
Yet, domestic crude supply to the refinery remains contentious. Industry data show that producers offered 68.1 million barrels to the refinery in Q2 2026 against its 63 million-barrel requirement, but only 52.6 million barrels were ultimately accepted.
The situation has fuelled renewed calls for the Federal Government and regulators to resolve outstanding issues surrounding crude allocation, pricing, commercial terms, transportation and delivery to domestic refineries.
For the NLC, the issue extends beyond another petrol price adjustment. It represents a test of whether Nigeria’s petroleum-sector reforms are delivering the promised benefits of energy security, domestic value addition and economic relief.
The labour movement is therefore demanding greater utilisation of Nigeria’s crude resources for domestic refining, insisting that increased production and local refining capacity must ultimately translate into tangible benefits for Nigerians.
The question now confronting policymakers is stark: if Nigeria is producing more crude and refining more fuel locally, why are Nigerians still paying increasingly higher prices at the pump?
