The Dangote Petroleum Refinery says the high cost of crude oil purchases delayed deeper reductions in petrol prices, revealing that it spent about $4.5 billion on crude imports over the past two months.

The refinery explained that although international crude oil prices have declined recently, the effect is not immediately reflected in petrol prices because crude is bought weeks or months before it is processed. As a result, fuel produced today is often refined from crude acquired at much higher prices.

According to the company, it imported 21.47 million barrels of crude through 24 cargoes in May at a total landed cost of $2.68 billion, with an average cost of $124.80 per barrel. In June, it received 18.93 million barrels across 21 cargoes at a cost of $1.80 billion, bringing the total crude purchase bill for the two months to approximately $4.48 billion.

The refinery said the gradual replacement of more expensive crude with lower-cost supplies has allowed it to cut its ex-depot petrol price four times within the past month. It added that any further price reductions will depend on production costs and the value of crude already in inventory rather than short-term changes in global oil prices.

The clarification comes amid growing public expectations that falling global crude prices should lead to lower petrol prices in Nigeria. Dangote maintained that the pricing of refined products is influenced by the actual cost of crude used in production, not just the current international market price.