Petrol hits N1,280 per litre in Abuja as MRS, NNPCL outlets shut down

Several filling stations in Abuja raised petrol pump prices for the second time in less than a week on Monday, July 20, 2026, while retail outlets belonging to MRS and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) shut down after running out of supply.

Marketers including Ranoil and Empire increased their pump prices by between N55 and N60 per litre, bringing the cost of petrol to between N1,275 and N1,280 per litre by the close of business on Monday.

Prices jump by over N100 in one week

Combined with earlier increases, major filling stations have now adjusted prices upward by at least N100 per litre within a single week. Two managers at MRS stations in Abuja, speaking anonymously, said they had been without petrol since Thursday, July 16, of the previous week. Attendants at NNPCL outlets also confirmed their stations ran dry on Monday afternoon.

Depot owners have similarly raised ex-depot prices to between N1,249 and N1,270 per litre.

Dangote Refinery shifts to dollar pricing

The latest price surge follows Dangote Refinery's decision to resume fuel sales in dollars. The 700,000-barrel-per-day plant set its petrol gantry price at $0.779 per litre, diesel at $1.087 per litre, and aviation fuel at $0.942 per litre.

Some petroleum marketers have also claimed the refinery suspended product loading, though the plant said its gantry prices remain unchanged. Industry sources linked the dollar-pricing move to a breakdown in the Naira-for-Crude arrangement, under which the refinery was to receive 13 million barrels of crude monthly from NNPCL.

According to a report by Punch, anonymous Dangote Refinery officials said the plant has only been receiving four million barrels per month. NNPCL spokesperson Andy Odey rejected that claim, saying the corporation had allocated 100 per cent of all available naira crude cargoes to DPRP in 2026, and there has been no withholding on its part.

Global oil prices add pressure

Global oil prices are adding further pressure. West Texas Intermediate crude traded above $82 per barrel on Monday night, while Brent crude rose above $87 per barrel.

Marketers call for government intervention

The National President of the Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN), Billy Gillis-Harry, said the government must act without delay. The Federal Government's intervention is key, he said. The Federal Government should step in over Dangote Refinery's resumption of refined products sales in dollars. Most of our members are unable to load products in dollars. We do not want the downstream sector to be dollarised.

The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) spokesperson, Chinedu Ukadike, urged the government to reopen negotiations with Dangote Refinery. We support the reactivation of the Naira-for-Crude deal with Dangote Refinery, he said. Some of our members' stations are closed because we could not obtain products in naira. The Federal Government should resume talks with Dangote Refinery before the situation gets out of hand.

President Bola Tinubu, who also serves as Minister of Petroleum Resources, has not commented publicly on the crisis. The last government meeting with downstream sector stakeholders was held in the first week of July and focused on cost-reflective petrol pricing.

Legit.ng previously reported that Nigeria's midstream and downstream petroleum regulator has come out in defence of Dangote Refinery's move to price refined petroleum products in U.S. dollars, stating that the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) explicitly permits operators to recover costs incurred in foreign currency. Senior officials at the regulatory body, who spoke anonymously, said the legal framework grants operators the right to recoup eligible operating expenses and earn reasonable returns on their capital. The clarification came after Dangote Refinery directed marketers to pay for petrol, diesel, and aviation fuel in dollars for all gantry and coastal transactions, ending the previous naira-based pricing structure for those sales channels.

For consumers and businesses, the shift to dollar pricing at the refinery and the breakdown of the Naira-for-Crude deal mean continued upward pressure on pump prices. With marketers unable to access products in naira and global crude prices remaining elevated, Nigerians face higher fuel costs in the weeks ahead.