12/09/2024
95% OF LOCAL MARKETERS DON'T BUY OUR DIESEL
BECAUSE THE PRICES ARE CHEAP; THEY ONLY
PURCHASE 3% OF OUR PRODUCTS DANGOTE REFINERY
He further revealed that local marketers wrote to President Bola Tinubu, complaining about the refinery's pricing strategies. "They wrote to His Excellency, the president, claiming that we are disturbing the market by dropping our prices," Edwin disclosed.
He explained that in response to market dynamics, the refinery reduced prices twice to encourage sales, but this only led to further resistance from the marketers, who accused the refinery of undercutting the market.
Edwin further said since that local marketers have been blocking the distribution of their products within the country, the refinery has been exporting most of its
petroleum products.
Edwin said that the refinery can produce up to 54 million liters of refined petroleum products per day, depending on crude oil supply. However, local crude supplies have been inconsistent, forcing the refinery to rely on imported crude from countries like the U.S. and Brazil. This situation has been exacerbated by international oil companies (IOCs) prioritizing foreign markets, often selling crude oil at prices significantly above the market rate
for local buyers.
He added that the refinery's production capacity is more than sufficient to meet Nigeria's petroleum needs. He stated that 44% of the refinery's output is enough to cover 100% of the country's demand for refined products.
