Dangote Petroleum Refinery has shattered records by loading more than 2,000 trucks of petrol per day, cementing its position as Nigeria’s dominant fuel supply hub while private depots across the country remain largely deserted.
The surge in activity follows aggressive price cuts, with Dangote slashing its ex-depot price to ₦699 per litre and lowering the minimum lift volume from 2 million litres to just 250,000 litres. These moves have opened direct access to thousands of smaller independent marketers, who now account for a significant portion of the daily loadings.
A new 10-day bank guarantee payment system has further fueled the rush, easing financial burdens and enabling round-the-clock operations to handle the unprecedented volume.
IPMAN, representing over 80% of Nigeria’s retail fuel stations, has fully endorsed the shift, with daily loadings previously reported at over 1,000 trucks earlier in December now consistently exceeding 2,000.
Industry sources confirm the dramatic consolidation: as Dangote captures the bulk of petrol distribution, traditional private depots face sharply reduced throughput and shrinking margins.