The recent reduction in the ex-depot petrol price by Dangote Petroleum Refinery may not immediately reflect at fuel stations due to existing stock purchased at higher prices, according to the Petroleum Products Retail Outlet Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN).
PETROAN president, Billy Gillis-Harris, stated this during an interview on Arise TV on Saturday, the same day Dangote Refinery announced a reduction in its ex-depot petrol price from N950 to N890 per litre.
He commended Dangote Refinery for the price cut, but explained that oil marketers faced challenges in adjusting prices immediately because they still had previously acquired stock.
“You can’t see it immediately, because we’ve already bought products,” Gillis-Harris said.
“We’ve already purchased different kinds of product that’s in our retail outlet now at the price which it was prior to the change this evening.
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“So the moment we lose N60 in that transaction, we are out of business. So we have to keep that product.
“But the only thing that we will advocate is that any one of us that starts buying product from Dangote at that price from tomorrow, Sunday, should endeavour to reflect that price in their retail outlets,” he said.
He further said that PETROAN had established a major working relationship with Dangote Refinery and MRS, a leading petrol retailer, to ensure price uniformity across outlets.
“So that is going to really help also in making sure that our retail outlets sell products at a uniform price,” he explained,” Gillis-Harris said.
“And that relationship will certainly ensure that petroleum product is available in all the nooks and crannies of this country,” he said.
The PETROAN president further said Nigeria was making progress in enhancing petroleum product availability and expressed optimism that as more local refineries become operational, the country could gradually reduce its reliance on fuel imports.
