The Dangote Petroleum Refinery has backed down on gantry loading of premium motor spirit and other refined products from its facility, asking marketers to choose their preferred option.

While it stated that it remains open to coastal loading, the refinery insisted that gantry loading remains the most cost-effective and efficient distribution option for Nigeria’s downstream sector.

The refinery warned that heavy reliance on coastal evacuation could significantly inflate fuel prices due to additional maritime and port-related charges that ultimately fall on consumers.

Daily Trust reports that Dangote and fuel marketers have differed sharply over the method of distribution of refined products.

While the refinery has advocated gantry loading of product which is a high-efficiency, automated process for transferring refined products from refineries or terminals directly into trucks, major marketers are disposed to coastal loading which involves loading onto sea vessels to the various private depots.

Our correspondent reports that many marketers had invested in depots through which they distribute their petroleum products.

However, Dangote said its priority is to ensure steady supply of high-quality petroleum products at competitive and affordable rates, adding that logistics choices play a critical role in determining pump prices.

“We are open to coastal loading where it is necessary,” the refinery stated, adding, “However, gantry loading remains the most economically efficient and operationally effective method. Coastal logistics introduce avoidable costs that have material implications for fuel pricing and consumer welfare.”

Dangote Refinery said it has invested heavily in infrastructure to support seamless land-based evacuation, including a world-class gantry facility with 91 loading bays capable of dispatching up to 2,900 tankers daily.

Operating round the clock, the facility can move more than 50 million litres of PMS, 14 million litres of diesel and other refined products each day, ensuring rapid distribution across the country.

According to the company, direct gantry loading eliminates port charges, vessel fees and maritime levies that add little value to end users but raise final product costs.

It estimated that coastal delivery could add about N75 per litre to petrol prices. If passed on to consumers, the refinery warned, this could push PMS prices close to N1,000 per litre.

Using Nigeria’s average daily consumption of about 50 million litres of PMS and 14 million litres of diesel, Dangote projected that sustained dependence on coastal logistics could cost the economy roughly N1.75 trillion annually.

“These additional costs would ultimately be borne by Nigerians, either through higher pump prices or reduced margins across the value chain,” the refinery noted.

The company also renewed calls for investment in pipeline infrastructure nationwide, arguing that functional pipelines connecting refineries to depots would drastically cut distribution costs, improve supply reliability and strengthen energy security.

Addressing claims that it imports finished petroleum products, Dangote Refinery dismissed the allegations as unfounded. It clarified that while its Residue Fluid Catalytic Cracking Unit is undergoing maintenance, it only imports intermediate feedstock in line with global industry practice, not refined fuels.

The refinery maintained that domestic refining has already delivered tangible benefits, citing a decline in diesel prices from about N1,700 per litre to below N1,000, while PMS prices have dropped from roughly N1,250 to between N839 and N900 per litre.

It added that increased local supply has helped curb fuel imports, reduce foreign exchange pressure and stabilise the market.

Reiterating its commitment to efficiency, transparency and affordability, Dangote urged marketers, regulators and policymakers to prioritise logistics decisions that support consumer protection and the long-term sustainability of Nigeria’s refining industry.