Sawt Falasteen - Nigerian airlines avert shutdown as Mideast war hikes fuel prices

It is the second time a strike has been averted in as many weeks.

Government talks with airlines have already resulted in a promise to grant carriers debt relief.

Global crude oil prices have soared since the United States and Israel began attacking Iran, prompting Tehran to shut the Strait of Hormuz.

They rose to above $126 per barrel on Thursday, the highest level since 2022.

Some carriers in Europe have already reduced flights over increased costs and warnings of low fuel supply.

Nigeria has not been spared from high prices, even though the country's massive Dangote refinery has increased production of jet fuel, according to Kpler data reviewed by AFP.

- Room to lower prices? -

Despite threats by the Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) that flights would halt on Thursday, domestic carriers Air Peace, Max Air and Rano Air were all operating, according to flight tracking data consulted by AFP.

The AON did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Air travel has become especially important in Nigeria as the country grapples with armed groups and kidnappings, which have pushed those who can afford it to stay off the road for long-distance travel.

The privately owned Dangote refinery, built by Nigeria's richest man, billionaire Aliko Dangote, came online in 2024.

Previously, the crude-producing country had for years imported gasoline and other refined products, as state-run refineries slid into disarray.

Maritime shipments of jet fuel from the Dangote refinery averaged 154,000 barrels per day in April 2026, a record high, according to Kpler data.

About half those have gone to countries outside Africa, a proportion roughly in line with the 12 months preceding the Iran war.

According to preliminary estimates, Nigeria's share of Dangote jet fuel deliveries has increased slightly, as volumes destined for other African nations have declined slightly.

- A global market -

Dangote refines both Nigerian and imported oil, so it is exposed to world market fluctuations.

Still, said Jide Pratt, Nigeria country manager for petro-trading platform Tradegrid, Dangote has room to bring down local jet fuel prices.

"I would assume that the priority would be to blend locally, so that there's a price reduction, so that things like freight and international Platts (benchmark) prices don't affect that," Pratt told AFP.

But "they're pricing internationally", Pratt said.

On the other hand, oil -- whether imported or drilled locally -- is a global market, argued Clement Isong, former TotalEnergies executive and current CEO of the Major Energies Marketers Association of Nigeria.

"Whether they're buying the light sweet crude from Nigeria or they're importing their crude... the crude oil price has gone up worldwide," Isong told AFP.

A Dangote spokesman did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Contacted by AFP, a spokesman for the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority denied reports that authorities would cap jet fuel prices.

Airline operators say fuel has more than tripled to 3,300 naira ($2.40) per litre.

Fuel sellers, known as "marketers", and independent analysts have disputed that figure, putting it closer to 2,000 naira.

N.Awad--SF-PST