Billionaire industrialist Aliko Dangote has declared his intention to lower the price of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) in Nigeria and sell directly to consumers if distributors hinder the price drop.
The move, he said, is aimed at making cooking gas more accessible to average Nigerians who currently rely on firewood or kerosene due to soaring gas prices.
Dangote made this known while addressing members of the Lagos Business School CGEO Africa during a visit to his refinery in Lekki. He revealed that the refinery is currently producing about 2,000 tonnes of LPG daily and is scaling up production to meet the growing national demand. “We are trying to bring down the price and make it cheaper,” he stated.
The business mogul emphasized that if existing LPG distributors fail to adjust their prices, his company will bypass them. “If the distributors are not trying to bring it down, we’ll go directly and sell to the consumers,” he warned, noting that increased affordability would promote a shift from traditional fuel sources to cleaner energy.
Cooking gas prices in Nigeria currently range from N1,000 to N1,300 per kilogram, a figure Dangote considers too high for the average household. His plan aligns with earlier announcements that his group will also begin direct distribution of petrol, diesel, and aviation fuel, alongside the launch of 4,000 CNG-powered buses.
However, key players in the LPG sector have raised objections to Dangote’s approach, accusing him of attempting to monopolize the market. Godwin Okoduwa, a former chairman of the LPG and Natural Gas Downstream Group at the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said, “I think it’s monopolistic. Growth in this sector came from collaboration, not domination.”
Okoduwa stressed that the LPG market expanded from 70,000 metric tonnes in 2007 to over 1.3 million tonnes in 2022 due to the combined efforts of private investors, the federal government, and Nigeria LNG. He warned that displacing existing stakeholders could stall this progress. “It shouldn’t be a zero-sum strategy,” he said, urging Dangote to “respect the market and let us grow.”
He further challenged Dangote to direct his attention to underdeveloped regions like the Northeast, where LPG usage remains extremely low. “If he goes there and develops infrastructure, we’ll thank him,” Okoduwa added.
Echoing these sentiments, Bassey Essien, Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Association of LPG Marketers, questioned the feasibility of the plan. “It’s unrealistic. Has the refinery sold petrol directly to consumers at a cheaper rate?” he asked, casting doubt on the billionaire’s claims.
While Dangote’s goal of reducing energy poverty is widely supported, industry experts insist that sustainable growth in the LPG sector requires cooperation, not control. The coming months may determine whether his intervention drives down prices—or upends the market.
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