The indebtedness of oil companies to the Federal Government regarding royalties and taxes has reportedly reached $6.175 billion.
Details of the debt were confirmed by the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) in its audit of the petroleum sector.
The report, presented on Friday in Abuja, detailed that as of August 31, 2024, the unpaid royalties and gas flare penalties owed to the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) amounted to $6.071 billion and ₦66.4 billion.
According to the report, the outstanding petroleum profit taxes, company income taxes, withholding taxes, and VAT owed to the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) totalled $21.926 million and ₦492.8 million as of June 2024.
NEITI also noted a 9 percent decline in industry revenue for 2023, with figures showing $16.467 billion compared to $18.106 billion in 2022.
The report highlighted a total loss of 7.68 million barrels of crude oil in 2023 due to theft and measurement inaccuracies, marking a significant decrease of 79 percent from the 36.69 million barrels lost in 2022.
Additionally, 153.44 million barrels of crude oil production were deferred in 2023, with companies such as SPDC (39.13 million barrels), TEPNG (6.07 million barrels), and TUPNI (3.5 million barrels) being notably impacted.
It was also reported that the government disbursed ₦3.01 trillion as a petrol subsidy in 2023, a decrease from ₦4.71 trillion in 2022.
The report indicated that 23.54 billion litres of PMS (premium motor spirit) were imported into the country in 2022, while imports fell to 20.28 billion liters in 2023, reflecting a reduction of 3.25 billion litres, or a 14 percent decline, following the subsidy removal.
“A detailed 10-year trend analysis (2014-2023) shows that the highest annual PMS importation into the country, 23.54 billion litres, was recorded in 2022, while the lowest, 16.88 billion litres, was recorded in 2017. A total of N15.87 trillion was claimed as under-recovery/price differentials between 2006 and 2023, with the highest amount, N4.714 trillion, recorded in 2022,” the NEITI audit revealed.
In his remark at the report unveiling, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Sen. George Akume, assured stakeholders that the government would continue to grant NEITI the freedom to fulfil its mandate to the country and the global Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, EITI.
Sen. Akume said: “As the Chairman of the NEITI Board, I stand before you today to underscore the Federal Government’s respect for NEITI’s independence. While my role as Chairperson is a testament to the importance the government places on NEITI, it also signifies the commitment to ensure that NEITI operates independently, without interference, as mandated by the EITI standard. We must safeguard this independence with great care and diligence, ensuring that NEITI can operate free from undue influence.”
EFCC Chair Vows To Recover Revenues
The Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Olanipekun Olukayode, pledged to utilize the most recent report to facilitate the recovery of all outstanding revenues owed by the companies to the government.
He further stated that based on previous reports from NEITI, the EFCC has successfully recovered and remitted more than ₦1 billion to the Federal Government’s accounts.
