The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has recovered more than N115 billion and $84 million in outstanding statutory levies owed the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) by oil companies, the commission told the Senate on Wednesday.
The disclosure was made before the Senate Public Accounts Committee, chaired by Senator Ibrahim Dankwambo, during its ongoing investigation into issues raised in the 2021–2023 Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) Oil and Gas Industry Audit Reports.
Representing the EFCC, Francis Usani said the commission investigated 43 oil companies following queries raised in the NEITI audit. He said 24 companies operating in the Niger Delta were found to have outstanding liabilities arising from the three per cent statutory levy payable to the NDDC, while 19 companies were cleared.
According to Usani, the 24 companies initially owed N76.88 billion and $81.08 million.
He said the EFCC’s intervention prompted some affected companies to settle their obligations directly with the NDDC, resulting in payments of N6.71 billion and $16.99 million.
The EFCC also released N73.37 billion and $67.07 million of the recovered funds to the NDDC, while N3.51 billion and $14.01 million remained in the commission’s recovery account.
Usani said the EFCC’s investigation focused primarily on the unpaid three per cent statutory levy due to the NDDC, as identified in the NEITI audit, but noted that other unpaid statutory obligations and taxes owed to the Federal Government could also exist.
The three per cent levy forms part of the NDDC’s statutory funding framework and is intended to support development projects across the Niger Delta, a region that has faced longstanding environmental and socioeconomic challenges linked to oil and gas activities.
Senate Tightens Pressure on Oil Firms
The Senate committee has also intensified its scrutiny of oil companies named in the NEITI audit reports, insisting that their chief executives personally appear before the panel to answer outstanding queries.
The committee rejected an attempt by TotalEnergies EP Nigeria Limited to send a representative in place of its management and directed the company’s managing director to appear before the panel next week.
It also issued a final opportunity to the managing directors of South Atlantic Petroleum Limited, Oando Oil Limited, Famfa Oil Limited and Green Energy International Limited to appear personally before the committee.
The action followed concerns over the adequacy of representations made by some companies in response to financial queries contained in the NEITI reports.
The Senate Public Accounts Committee is reviewing the 2021, 2022 and 2023 NEITI Oil and Gas Industry Audit Reports, which examine production, payments, revenues and other transactions between oil companies and government entities.
The reports are intended to promote transparency and accountability in Nigeria’s extractive sector while identifying discrepancies, revenue gaps and outstanding obligations requiring clarification or reconciliation.
The committee has therefore been summoning companies named in the reports to explain unresolved queries. It had earlier warned that failure to honour its invitations could lead to the invocation of the constitutional powers of the National Assembly.
For the lawmakers, the investigation is not only about recovering outstanding funds but also about determining whether companies are complying with their statutory obligations and whether existing mechanisms for collecting government revenues are effective.
The EFCC’s recovery efforts have provided the Senate with additional information as it examines the financial relationship between oil companies and government institutions responsible for collecting statutory revenues.
The committee is expected to continue its investigative hearing as it examines further details from the NEITI reports. More oil companies and government agencies could be invited as lawmakers seek to determine the full extent of outstanding obligations and whether additional funds due to the NDDC or Federal Government remain unremitted.
Dankwambo said the committee would continue its investigation until it obtained satisfactory explanations on the issues raised in the audit reports.
The Senate probe could result in further recovery actions, additional summonses or enforcement recommendations where companies are found to have failed to meet their statutory obligations.
