The Senate’s ad-hoc committee investigating crude oil theft in the Niger Delta has uncovered an estimated N300 billion in missing domestic crude proceeds and flagged over $200 billion in unaccounted global crude oil revenue, sparking nationwide outrage and renewed calls for accountability in Nigeria’s oil sector.
The committee’s interim report, presented to the Senate after months of forensic audits, document reviews and public hearings, detailed massive discrepancies, weak oversight, faulty measurement systems and systemic lapses that have enabled large-scale diversion of crude oil revenue.
According to the findings, a forensic review of domestic crude and tax oil proceeds revealed mismatches, sale differentials and missing funds amounting to about $22 billion. The report also highlighted an $81 billion shortfall between revenue declared by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and what was recorded by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for 2016 and 2017.
Further analysis, backed by international consultants, projected that over $200 billion from crude oil sales between 2015 and date remains unaccounted for globally.
Measurement Failures, Weak Oversight Identified
The committee traced the losses to deeply embedded structural problems, including:
- Use of unverified measuring instruments
- Absence of metrological control
- Poor coordination among regulatory agencies
- Weak enforcement mechanisms
The report also faulted the suspension of the Weights and Measures Department in the upstream sector under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021, saying the decision compromised accurate measurement and accountability.
Insecurity and regulatory failure were further amplified by the non-implementation of the Host Communities Development Trust Fund (HCDTF), which the committee said has contributed to persistent vandalism and community sabotage.
Calls for Recovery, Technology Deployment
The committee urged the Federal Government to:
- Launch international tracking and recovery of stolen crude proceeds
- Empower the Nigerian Upstream Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) to enforce global measurement standards or reinstate the Weights and Measures Department
- Equip security agencies with modern surveillance systems, including drones, to detect theft in real time
- Establish a Maritime Trust Fund to support maritime security
- Create a special court to prosecute crude oil thieves swiftly
- Implement the HCDTF to reduce community sabotage
It also raised alarm over the rising number of abandoned and poorly decommissioned oil wells leaking into communities. The committee recommended that such wells be transferred to NUPRC and handed over to modular refineries to boost local crude supply and curb vandalism.
Despite the alarming revelations, the report noted a 9.5% improvement in crude production in 2023—from 490.95 million barrels in 2022 to 537.57 million barrels—indicating modest recovery.
Senate Pushes Back on Recovery Role
While commending the committee, the Senate clarified that it is not within its mandate to recover stolen funds, directing the committee instead to name individuals and entities involved, after which the executive arm will take action.
Nigerians React: Anger, Disappointment, Resignation
The revelations have stirred mixed reactions across the country.
Oil analyst Idowu Christopher said the report only confirmed long-held suspicions about entrenched corruption in the oil sector.
“The government knows the people involved but refuses to act,” he said. “How can individuals own oil wells in a country where the resources should belong to everyone? Only in Nigeria.”
He backed the recommendation to reclaim unused oil wells and allocate them to modular refineries, insisting that government inaction has enabled decades of losses.
For legal practitioner and public affairs analyst Chikia Umeayo, there is no shock left to express.
“It would have been surprising if the report said otherwise,” he said. “We’ve raised these concerns for years. Nothing ever comes out of these investigations, so many of us have stopped expecting change.”
Committee Seeks Global Mandate
Reconstituted on February 11, 2025, after the death of its former chairman, Senator Ifeanyi Ubah, the committee asked the Senate to authorize it to trace and recover stolen crude proceeds worldwide, stressing that recovery is key to restoring accountability and strengthening Nigeria’s fiscal health.
Whether this investigation will finally lead to decisive action remains a question many Nigerians are too familiar with—one they believe history has already answered.
Comments