Reps to Investigate N8.4tn Allegedly Withheld by NNPCL

The House of Representatives has directed its Committees on Finance, Petroleum (Upstream and Downstream) to investigate reports from the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Responsibility Commission (RMAFC) alleging that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) withheld N8.48 trillion as claimed subsidies for petrol. The investigation will also examine a report by the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), which claims that NNPCL failed to remit $2 billion (approximately N3.6 trillion) in taxes to the Federal Government.

In addition, the committees have been tasked with verifying the total cumulative amount of unremitted revenue, referred to as under-recovery, from the sale of petrol by NNPCL between 2020 and 2023.

The investigation comes as the House also approved the 2025-2027 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP), ahead of President Bola Tinubu’s presentation of the 2025 Appropriation Bill to the National Assembly. The approved oil benchmark for 2025 is set at $75 per barrel, with oil production projected at 2.06 million barrels per day.

Debate Over Oil Benchmark and Production Targets

The $75 oil benchmark for 2025 sparked debate within the House, with Minority Leader Kingsley Chinda arguing for a retention of the 2024 benchmark of $77.96, citing higher-than-expected oil prices in the first quarter of 2024. However, Chairman of the House Committee on Finance, Abiodun Faleke, defended the $75 figure, stating it was a realistic projection given the volatility of global oil prices. He emphasized that a lower benchmark would help avoid inflated expectations.

There was also debate over domestic oil production targets, with Chinda expressing concerns about the ambitious projections of 2.06 million barrels per day (mbpd) for 2025, pointing out that actual production is currently much lower. Faleke, however, justified the target, referencing an improvement in production figures and encouraging higher expectations to push operators for better performance.

The proposed exchange rate of N1,400 to the dollar for the 2025-2027 period also drew scrutiny, with concerns raised about currency volatility and its potential impact on the country’s borrowing and budget deficit. Despite these discussions, the MTEF and FSP, including the $75 oil benchmark, were ultimately adopted by the House.