Oil marketers have called for liberalisation of the downstream sector, where other players with licenses will be allowed to import more Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) or petrol into the country. National President of the Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN), Billy Gillis-Harry, made his stance known while appearing as a guest on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief on Tuesday.
According to him, healthy competition in the downstream sector will further protect the country from petrol price shocks following ongoing crisis in the Middle East, which has affected the importation of petrol into the country. Crisis in the Middle East has seen petrol rise above N1,200 per litre locally.
He argued that market liberalisation will create healthy competition among players and eventually lead to product affordability. “We do not want to recommend a total dependence on getting petroleum products from foreign. Importation should not be a permanent thing.
“Our position is that since we have a local refinery, such as the Dangote Refinery, which has helped advance the economy, there is still clearly a need to bring in additional product sources. This will help liberalise the market and ensure that it is competitive.
“The fact that we are depending on the Dangote Refinery today is a great pointer to where we can go. While we think that refining will increase in the country, temporarily, we should also allow imports to come in because that will help us to be able to compete favourably”.
He said. READ ALSO: Intergovernmental Deal On $25bn Nigeria-Morocco Gas Pipeline Due This Year Gillis-Harry faulted the recent position of the World Bank, which advised Nigeria to deepen fuel importation. In its April 2026 Nigeria Development Update (NDU), the World Bank dished out a clear set of policy actions centred on removing supply-side constraints, warning that without decisive intervention, inflationary pressures could intensify despite recent moderation.
The report identified restricted competition in the downstream petroleum sector and trade barriers on critical imports as key drivers of cost escalation across the economy. It recommended reinstating petrol import licences to reintroduce competition in the PMS market, where pricing pressures have intensified following the suspension of import permits earlier in the year.
According to the report, the absence of competitive supply has contributed to a situation where domestic petrol prices have risen above import parity levels.