Reps probe oil firms over N432bn revenue debt

From Ndubuisi Orji, Abuja

The House of Representatives has launched a probe into N432.07 billion in oil revenue allegedly owed the Federal Government, summoning affected companies to account for the huge outstanding liabilities and explain payments made, if any.

The investigation by the House Public Accounts Committee (PAC) will also scrutinise a separately reported N162.46 billion debt by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), as lawmakers seek to unravel discrepancies in successive official records on the liabilities.

At the centre of the probe are 146 oil companies listed by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) as debtors, alongside questions over why hundreds of billions of naira due to government remained unrecovered despite successive audit queries.

The investigation, covering liabilities dating from 2017 to 2023, followed findings contained in the Auditor-General’s annual audit reports on indebtedness by operators in the petroleum sector.

Chairman of PAC, Bamidele Salam, said the committee would scrutinise the basis of the outstanding liabilities, periods covered, payments already made, balances remaining and steps taken by regulatory authorities to recover the money.

He warned companies summoned by the committee to honour the invitations and produce all relevant records.

“Any company invited by this Committee must respect the people’s Parliament of the Federal Republic of Nigeria by honouring the summons with appropriate representation and all relevant documents.

“We are not here to witch-hunt anybody; our responsibility is to establish the facts, protect public revenue and ensure that every naira due to government is properly accounted for,” Salam said.

Records before the committee contain different figures reflecting different reporting periods and categories of debtors, which the PAC is expected to reconcile during the investigation.

According to the Auditor-General’s 2023 Annual Audit Report, NNPCL and oil marketing companies owed NMDPRA a combined N392.73 billion.

Of the amount, NNPCL accounted for N162.46 billion, while oil companies operating under industry associations, including the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria (DAPPMAN), Major Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN) and Major Energy Marketers Association of Nigeria (MEMAN), owed N230.27 billion.

The liabilities arose from Balancing Allowance, National Transport Average, the one per cent Midstream and Downstream Gas Infrastructure Fund, as well as legacy debts associated with imports, coastal and credit transactions.

But the Auditor-General’s 2024 report subsequently put outstanding liabilities at N432.07 billion. Significantly, the figure was stated to exclude NNPCL’s indebtedness, indicating that it related to obligations owed by other operators in the sector.

A later submission by NMDPRA to the PAC, however, showed that 146 oil companies operating under DAPPMAN, MEMAN and MOMAN owed the authority N327.53 billion as of 2025.

That leaves a difference of about N104.55 billion between the N432.07 billion contained in the 2024 audit report and the N327.53 billion subsequently reported by NMDPRA for the 146 companies.

The committee is expected to establish whether the difference resulted from payments, reconciliation of accounts, adjustments or other factors.

It will also determine the current status of NNPCL’s separately reported N162.46 billion liability.

Salam said PAC would insist that the affected companies provide documentary evidence of payments and other records necessary to establish their actual indebtedness.

The probe will further seek to establish why liabilities running into hundreds of billions of naira remained outstanding despite successive audit queries and whether regulatory or recovery failures contributed to their accumulation.