28.12.2025
Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Group CEO Bayo Ojulari, has welcomed the price war between his organisation and the Dangote Refinery saying Nigerians are the real winners.
Speaking to journalists on Sunday after briefing President Bola Tinubu in Lagos, Ojulari characterized the current market volatility as a “natural consequence” of Nigeria’s historic pivot from being an import-dependent nation to a domestic refining powerhouse.
“Where there is healthy competition, the buyers are the ultimate beneficiaries. And I think for us, we need to keep our minds that the market will stabilise,” Ojulari stated. “After a while, there’ll be some tension, because we’re going through a major transition.”
The NNPCL chief’s remarks come amid a dramatic shift in pump prices. Following the ramp-up of the 650,000 barrels-per-day Dangote Refinery and the rehabilitation of NNPCL facilities, petrol prices have plummeted from over N1,200 per litre in late 2024 to as low as N739 per litre at some outlets this December.
Ojulari expressed confidence that this downward trend would continue to favor the public. “At the end of the day, I can tell you that Nigerians on the street are going to be the beneficiaries,” he declared.
He took the opportunity to clarify NNPCL’s evolving role under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), emphasizing that the company has transitioned from a regulator to a strictly commercial entity.
“The first thing you have to know is that the PIA did something fundamental. Before the PIA in 2021, which rolled in 2022, everything was under NNPC, including some regulations. The PIA divided the roles of regulation from what I will call the business,” he explained.
“So it’s very important that Nigerians understand that post-PIA, we as NNPC are not regulators,” Ojulari added. He noted that NNPCL is now a “commercial company, which means a company that needs to compete profitably and be successful profitably,” operating without federation allocations and raising its own capital.
The entry of the Dangote Refinery—which adjusted its prices over 20 times in 2025 alone—has fundamentally disrupted the old market equilibrium. Ojulari acknowledged that the scale of such a facility necessitates a period of adjustment for all players.
“To be honest with you, by the time you have a refinery like Dangote in-country, which has not been there before, with NNPC refinery now under a major relook, such a huge refinery in the country, you can expect the market will be impacted right now,” he said. “All we need to do together is to walk through that reality.”