The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has said it will continue to collaborate with the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) to review its alleged indebtedness to the federation.
In a statement on Monday, NNPCL Chief Corporate Communications Officer, Olufemi Soneye, said the oil company would also work with relevant parties in the reconciliation committee set up by President Bola Tinubu to investigate, review and reconcile the financial records on alleged indebtedness by the Federation Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC). He said the decision was reached after an unnamed non-governmental organisation (NGO) called for a probe of several monies allegedly owed to the federation by NNPC.
“The NGO’s [call] was baseless, considering the fact that NEITI itself had dismissed many of the allegations in the said 2021 report, following a series of engagements with NNPC Ltd,” the statement read. Noting that it was made to sell premium motor spirit (PMS) imported into the country “at one third of its value” at the start of Tinubu’s administration, the company said this resulted in an average of N400 billion monthly subsidy bill, Soneye said, adding that it subsequently put a strain on its revenues and finances.
According to the NNPCL, the subsidy bill accumulated to over N3.736 trillion as of May 31, 2023. The company stated that an accumulation of N174.07 billion in indebtedness by the federation was also recorded due to non-payment of its share of upstream joint venture gas supplied to government-owned plants. “Similarly, the receivables due from the federation to NNPC Exploration & Production Limited (NEPL) as of 31st May 2023 amount to $712million (equivalent to N309.07 billion at N434.08/US$1) for revenues not remitted to NEPL but paid into the Federation account.
“While the Federation owed NNPCL the sum of N4.207 trillion as net indebtedness, the Company was only indebted to the Federation in the sum of N2.852 trillion, made up mainly of outstanding Good and Valuable Consideration (GVC) in respect of government upstream divestments, royalties and Petroleum Profit taxes (PPT).
