Reps probe alleged $850b unrepatriated oil, non-oil proceeds
Stakeholders, yesterday, in Abuja raised concerns over compliance with the Domestic Crude Supply Obligation (DCSO) that prioritises supply to domestic refineries ahead of export, as well as the rising gas flaring cases in the country.
In the House of Representatives, an investigation has commenced into the alleged non-repatriation of Nigeria’s crude oil and non-oil export proceeds estimated at over $850 billion between 1996 and 2014.
Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Sen. Heineken Lokpobiri, at the 2025 International Conference on Hydrocarbon Science and Technology (ICHST), acknowledged that Nigeria had yet to fully implement its DCSO under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), a situation that continues to hinder local refining and job creation.
Speaking through the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry, Dr Emeka Obi, at the opening of the programme, Lokpobiri said despite progress in sector reforms, the DCSO regime designed to guarantee crude oil supply to domestic refineries before exports, remained only partially operational.
He disclosed that the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) had been compelled to intervene to enforce compliance, stressing that without reliable domestic crude allocation, investments in local refining and midstream operations would struggle to deliver value.
The minister noted that while Nigeria’s crude production rose to about 1.8 million barrels per day, refining capacity remained under-utilised, largely due to supply shortfalls and technical skill gaps.
Lokpobiri called on the Petroleum Training Institute (PTI) to intensify manpower development and research collaboration to support the full implementation of the DCSO and strengthen local capacity in refining, logistics, and downstream operations essential for industrial growth and energy security.
Delivering a keynote on behalf of Chairman of PANA Holdings, Dr Daere Akobo, the Group’s Sustainability Lead, Dr Chidiebele Uzoagba, decried Nigeria’s gas flaring levels, stressing that the flare had risen for the second consecutive year.
Increasing by about 12 per cent in 2024 despite multiple government initiatives to curb emissions, according to data cited at the conference, Akobo described the trend as “deeply concerning” and inconsistent with the country’s decarbonisation ambitions.
The Executive Commissioner for Corporate Services and Administration at the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Dr Kelechi Ofoegbu, said Africa’s hydrocarbon wealth would only translate into sustainable prosperity if managed through ethical governance built on transparency, fairness, and accountability.
Ofoegbu said governance, not geology, remains the true determinant of Africa’s success in the global energy transition. He stressed that ethical governance “is guiding Nigeria’s decarbonisation framework, gas flare commercialisation drive, and participation in the Africa Petroleum Regulators Forum (AFRIPERF), aimed at promoting transparency across the continent.”
The Principal and Chief Executive of the Petroleum Training Institute (PTI), Effurun, Dr Samuel Onoji, called on African nations to prioritise balance between economic growth, environmental stewardship, and governance as the continent navigates the global energy transition.
CHAIRMAN of the House Ad hoc Committee on Pre-shipment Inspection of Exports and Non-Repatriation of Crude Oil Proceeds, Seyi Sowunmi, disclosed during the committee’s inaugural press briefing at the National Assembly, Abuja, that recent findings suggested a significant breakdown in compliance with the Pre-shipment Inspection of Exports Act, and with operators in the oil and gas sector reportedly failing to repatriate between 40 and 45 per cent of Nigeria’s crude oil export proceeds.
According to him, this is contrary to the law mandating full repatriation of export earnings within 90 days for oil exports and 180 days for non-oil exports.
Sowunmi expressed concern over the worrisome disparity in export-earnings data reported by agencies such as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Department of Petroleum Resources (now NUPRC), Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), and the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), as well as inconsistencies between Nigerian data and those of international bodies like Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). He added that non-oil exports, especially in solid minerals, also suffer from high non-compliant export earnings reports.
The Pre-shipment Inspection of Exports Act (CAP P26, LFN 2004) established the Nigerian Export Supervision Scheme (NESS) to prevent capital flight, ensure accurate export valuation, and safeguard foreign exchange earnings, he noted.
Before the law was enacted, he added, Nigeria suffered endemic leakages through under-valuation, delayed invoicing, price manipulation, illegal swaps and deliberate overloading. Sowunmi said that the probe is non-partisan and focused purely on safeguarding Nigeria’s economic integrity.
