The 10th Senate has uncovered significant financial irregularities in the country’s crude oil sector, revealing that about $303 billion may have been siphoned from both domestic and international crude transactions.
The probe was led by Senator Ned Nwoko, who chaired the committee and presented the preliminary findings to the Senate on Wednesday in Abuja.
According to the report, a forensic audit of domestic crude proceeds and tax oil returns exposed unaccounted funds, mismatches, and discrepancies totaling $22 billion.
Further investigations revealed a shortfall of $81 billion between figures reported by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for the years 2016 and 2017 – an alarming discovery that drew the Senate’s attention.
In addition, the committee disclosed that over $200 billion in global crude oil proceeds have gone unaccounted for between 2015 and the present.
The report, based on months of document review and public hearings, linked the losses to weak regulatory oversight, faulty measurement systems, and poor coordination among key government agencies.
Key issues identified include: the use of unverified measuring instruments, lack of meteorological oversight, weak interagency collaboration, and ineffective enforcement.
The panel also criticised the suspension of the Weights and Measures Department’s role in the upstream sector under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021, noting that the move jeopardized measurement accuracy and accountability in crude operations.
Additionally, the absence of a dedicated court for prosecuting oil theft and delays in implementing the Host Communities Development Trust Fund (HCDTF) were cited as factors fueling sabotage in oil-producing regions.
The committee estimated that unaccounted domestic crude sales could amount to $300 billion and urged the government to initiate immediate local and international recovery efforts.
The report also expressed concern over abandoned or poorly decommissioned oil wells in the Niger-Delta, which continue to leak and pollute local communities. It recommended handing such wells over to modular refineries to boost local crude supply and reduce vandalism. Despite these challenges, the panel noted a 9.5% increase in crude production in 2023 – from 490.95 million barrels in 2022 to 537.57 million barrels – suggesting progress in production and security.
During the session, senators weighed in on the findings. Bauchi-Central’s Abdul Ningi stressed that while the committee can trace losses, it lacks the authority to recover stolen funds. Ogun-West’s Solomon Adeola insisted that those responsible be named:
“The funds mentioned in this report, if put together, we are talking about $300 billion dollars. The consultant should come up with a detailed list of those who carried out these actions”.
Other senators, including Ibrahim Ɗankwambo and Enyinnaya Abaribe, urged for names, locations, and specific actors to be identified in the final report, while Kwara-South’s Lola Ashiru warned that the total losses nearly match “almost 10 years of Nigeria’s budget”.
Senate President Godswill Akpabio praised the committee’s work and instructed it to continue its investigation and present a thorough final report.
