Nigeria’s drive to recover statutory payments from the petroleum industry has yielded more than N115 billion and $84 million following enforcement action involving oil companies with financial obligations to the Niger Delta Development Commission.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission disclosed the recoveries during proceedings before the Senate Public Accounts Committee, where lawmakers are examining revenue and compliance issues highlighted by audits of the country’s extractive sector.
The intervention followed an examination of 43 petroleum companies to determine whether they had fulfilled mandatory contributions connected to their operations in the Niger Delta.
Investigators established liabilities against 24 of the companies, while the remaining 19 were found not to have outstanding obligations under the specific assessment reviewed by the anti-graft agency.
The investigation centred on the statutory contribution that petroleum operators are required to make toward funding development activities in oil-producing communities.
At the initial stage of the exercise, outstanding obligations attributed to the affected companies amounted to approximately N76.88 billion and $81.08 million.
Recovery efforts subsequently resulted in payments being made through different channels, including settlements made directly to the NDDC and funds collected through the EFCC.
Companies responding to the enforcement process paid about N6.71 billion and $16.99 million directly to the NDDC, according to information presented to lawmakers.
The EFCC separately transferred approximately N73.37 billion and $67.07 million from its recoveries to the development commission.
Additional recovered funds remain in the anti-graft agency’s recovery account pending further administrative processes.
The financial recovery is emerging as one of the major outcomes of the ongoing scrutiny of Nigeria’s petroleum revenue system following findings contained in the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative’s audits covering 2021 through 2023.
Lawmakers are using the audit findings to examine whether companies operating across the upstream petroleum industry have fully discharged payments owed to government institutions.
The exercise could extend beyond NDDC-related obligations. The EFCC indicated that its immediate investigation concentrated on the development commission’s statutory funding, while recognising that other taxes or government payments could require separate examination.
The Senate is meanwhile increasing pressure on senior executives of companies connected with unresolved issues identified during the audit process.
Rather than accepting representatives in some cases, the Public Accounts Committee is demanding direct appearances from company chief executives as it seeks explanations on outstanding financial and compliance questions.
The committee has directed the head of TotalEnergies EP Nigeria Limited to appear before lawmakers and has also demanded appearances from senior executives of South Atlantic Petroleum Limited, Oando Oil Limited, Famfa Oil Limited and Green Energy International Limited.
The tougher stance signals that the investigation is moving beyond reconciliation of figures toward establishing responsibility for unresolved obligations across the petroleum industry.
Nigeria has increasingly relied on audits and enforcement measures to strengthen revenue collection from its oil and gas sector as the government seeks to reduce leakages and improve the amount of petroleum income reaching public institutions.
For the Niger Delta, improved collection of statutory industry contributions could increase resources available for infrastructure and development programmes across communities that host much of Nigeria’s petroleum production.
The Senate committee is expected to continue examining companies and government institutions connected with issues identified in the extractive-industry audits, potentially opening the way for additional recoveries where further unpaid obligations are established.
