The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) has revealed that as of June 2024, the federal government is owed $6.071 billion and N66.4 billion in unpaid revenues from the oil and gas sector.
NEITI made this known on Thursday during the public unveiling of its 2022 and 2023 Independent Oil and Gas Industry Reports in Abuja.
According to NEITI, outstanding debts include $6.049 billion and N65.9 billion in unpaid royalties and gas flare penalties owed to the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) as of 31 August.
In addition, $21.9 million and N492.8 million in petroleum profit taxes, company income taxes, withholding taxes, and value-added tax (VAT) were due to the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) by June 2024.
The report was presented by Ola Olukoyede, the chairperson of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), alongside George Akume, Secretary to the Government of the Federation, and other officials.
NEITI’s report provided a detailed breakdown of who owes what to the government in terms of outstanding revenues.
The latest report on fuel imports highlighted that 23.54 billion litres of petrol were imported into Nigeria in 2022, with a reduced volume of 20.28 billion litres in 2023, a 14 percent drop representing 3.25 billion litres.
NEITI also conducted a 10-year trend analysis (2014–2023), showing that the highest petrol importation of 23.54 billion litres occurred in 2022, while the lowest, 16.88 billion litres, was recorded in 2017.
The report revealed that between 2006 and 2023, N15.87 trillion was spent on under-recovery and price differentials, with the highest figure of N4.714 trillion reported in 2022.
Regarding crude oil production, Nigeria produced 490.945 million barrels of fiscalised crude in 2022, down 11 percent from the 556.130 million barrels produced in 2021.
In 2023, however, production increased by 9.5 percent to 537.571 million barrels, an additional 46.626 million barrels compared to 2022.
Read also: Nigeria’s oil & gas is fading star in African market- Tony Attah
The 10-year trend of fiscalised crude production (2014–2023) indicated the highest volume of 798.542 million barrels was produced in 2014, while the lowest, 490.945 million barrels, occurred in 2022.
The report also provided details on crude lifting, showing that 482.074 million barrels were lifted in 2022, compared to 551.006 million barrels in 2021.
For 2023, crude lifting rose by 11 percent to 534.159 million barrels, an increase of 58.08 million barrels from the previous year.
On the issue of oil theft and crude losses, 7.68 million barrels were either stolen or lost in 2023, marking a significant reduction of 79 percent compared to 36.69 million barrels lost in 2022.
NEITI’s report also reviewed the regulatory framework of the oil and gas sector, covering the legal and fiscal regimes, government roles, reforms, and the Petroleum Industry Act, which aims to combat corruption in the industry.
