Depot petrol falls toward N1,266 while pumps in Lagos and Abuja stay above N1,310
Petrol prices at filling stations across Nigeria remain high even as depot prices have dropped, raising questions about the gap between wholesale loading and what motorists pay.
The mid-day depot report for Tuesday, 8 September 2026, put Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) between N1,266 and N1,280 a litre at several major Lagos depots. Dangote Refinery and Pinnacle quoted N1,266; MRS N1,267; Aiteo, Integrated and Sahara N1,270; Ascon and NIPCO N1,280. The lowest Lagos depot figure was N44 below N1,310, the lowest retail price reported at some stations. Many pumps in Lagos and Abuja were still as high as N1,325.
In Calabar, depot prices ran from N1,280 at Mainland to N1,300 at Fynefield, with Matrix at N1,290. In Warri, Nepal and Optima quoted N1,275; Parker and Prudent N1,280; A.Y.M. Shafa N1,287; Matrix N1,290. Several depots cut prices during the day: Integrated and Sahara in Lagos by N9 to N1,270; Lister by N3 to N1,277. In Warri, Bulk Strategic, Liquid Bulk and Masters cut N10; Matrix cut N5; Rain Oil cut N20 to N1,280.
Operators say transport, storage, handling and station costs sit on top of the depot ticket, especially on long hauls, and that not every station buys at the same rate. Competition at the depots is keeping wholesale numbers relatively soft; the pump has not fully followed.
For motorists the only test is whether a N1,266–N1,280 loading bay becomes a N1,266–N1,280 forecourt. If depot cuts continue and the pump does not move, the extra naira is being kept somewhere in the chain between the gantry and the nozzle. That is the argument the latest sheet of numbers puts on the table.
