Aliko Dangote, the president of the Dangote Group, has shared plans to reduce the price of cooking gas (LPG) in Nigeria. He said he might start selling directly to consumers if current sellers do not agree to lower the price.
But many people working in the gas business are not happy about this move. They believe Dangote is trying to take over the entire LPG market by himself. On Monday, some of them spoke out, saying they were worried about a possible monopoly.
During a recent visit to his refinery by both Nigerian and foreign visitors, Dangote explained that the current cost of cooking gas is too high. He said many people still rely on firewood because they can’t afford gas, and he wants to change that.
He mentioned that the refinery now produces 22,000 tonnes of cooking gas each day. They are planning to push more of it into the Nigerian market, especially now that more people are starting to use gas for cooking.
While talking to guests from the Lagos Business School CGEO Africa during their tour of the Lekki refinery, Dangote said they are currently producing 2,000 tonnes of LPG daily. He believes the price is too expensive and wants to make it cheaper for Nigerians.
Dangote made it clear that if the current distributors refuse to lower their prices, he will step in and sell gas straight to buyers. His goal is to help people switch from using firewood and kerosene to using gas.
The PUNCH also reported that Dangote plans to start selling petrol, diesel, and aviation fuel directly to fuel marketers across Nigeria by August. He even bought 4,000 CNG-powered buses for this purpose.
At the moment, the price of cooking gas is between N1,000 and N1,300 per kilogram. Dangote hopes to bring the cost down to make it more affordable for everyone.
However, not everyone agrees with his plan. Some operators in the gas business are unhappy about it.
One of them, Godwin Okoduwa, who used to lead the LPG and Natural Gas Downstream Group at the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said Dangote’s plan feels like an attempt to control the entire market.
Okoduwa pointed out that other investors had helped grow the market from 70,000 metric tonnes in 2007 to over 1 million metric tonnes by 2022. He believes that success came from working together with the government, Nigeria LNG, and gas dealers.
He emphasized that true growth happens when everyone works together — not when one person tries to dominate the market. He said other countries like South Africa, Morocco, and Tunisia are already using more gas per person than Nigeria and that Nigeria can do better.
Okoduwa added that the industry should keep growing through teamwork. He acknowledged that Dangote has invested heavily but said he shouldn’t use that to push others out of the market.
According to him, many businesses have spent years building the LPG market. Dangote is benefiting from that hard work, so he should respect it and not try to destroy the competition.
His suggestion to Dangote was simple: instead of trying to outdo everyone, work together. He said Nigeria’s LPG market can grow from 1.3 million to 5 million tonnes if people work together.
When asked about Dangote’s claim that his goal is to make gas more affordable and stop people from using firewood, Okoduwa replied that he should start by improving LPG supply in the Northeast, where people use it the least.
Likewise, Bassey Essien, who leads the Nigerian Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers, questioned if Dangote could really sell gas directly to people and bring down the price.
He said, “It’s not realistic.” Essien pointed out that even with petrol (PMS), Dangote’s refinery hasn’t been able to sell directly to people at low prices, so the same may happen with cooking gas.
