Nigeria’s downstream petroleum sector is embroiled in a deepening dispute as the Dangote Refinery’s aggressive pricing strategy reshapes market behaviour while sparking serious allegations against the country’s oil regulator.
In Lagos this week, private petroleum depot owners cut the ex-depot price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) from around ₦828 to about ₦710 per litre, reacting to competitive offers from Dangote-linked marketers selling petrol near ₦703 per litre.
The price adjustment displays market pressure and heightened competition following Dangote’s fuel supply strategy.
Beyond the pricing, Aliko Dangote, president of the Dangote Group, has publicly accused the Chief Executive of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Farouk Ahmed, of economic sabotage and corruption.
According to Dangote, Ahmed spent roughly $5 million on the secondary education of his four children in Switzerland, a level of expenditure he believes, is inconsistent with a public servant’s earnings and raises questions about financial impropriety and regulatory integrity.
During a press briefing at his Lekki refinery, he urged Nigerian authorities to launch a full investigation and for Ahmed to explain how such funds were raised.
He has suggested that relevant anti-graft bodies scrutinise the regulator’s conduct.
Most recently, civil groups are demanding independent probes into the NMDPRA boss’s wealth, while others defend him and argue that no verifiable proof has been provided to substantiate the corruption claims.
Although Dangote released specific details regarding the alleged foreign education expenses of Engr. Farouk Ahmed’s four children.
In the report, the NMDPRA boss spent approximately $2 million for four children’s university fees (over 4 years).
He also spent $210,000 on his son, Faisal’s Harvard MBA ($150,000 tuition + $60,000 for upkeep, tickets, and incidentals) in 2025.
Dangote additionally criticises the regulator for favouring import licences that he argues undercut local refining capacity and energy security.
The House of Representatives has invited Dangote Refinery and the NMDPRA to resolve disagreements threatening the downstream petroleum sector.
According to the Reps joint committee on Petroleum Resources, the rising tensions could undermine the fragile stability recently achieved.
Nigerians are watching to see how authorities will respond to the serious regulatory accusations.
