Business

NNPC Remits N69bn To Federation Account …Raises Refineries’ Crude Supply To 650,000bpd

Published

10 years ago

May 9, 2016

L-R: Minister of Power, Works and Housing , Babatunde Fashola; Gov. Atiku Bagudu of Kebbi State and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, during a courtesy visit by Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria to the Vice President at Presidential Villa in Abuja last week Wednesday.

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has paid the sum of N69.544 billion into the Federation Account in March.
This is contained in the corporation’s monthly financial report for March released in Abuja, at the weekend.
It said that amount had brought the total amount paid to the Federation Account for Domestic Crude Oil and Gas and other receipts from April 2015 to March 2016 to N1.118 trillion.
It added that NNPC also recorded N107.826 billion revenue in the month of March against N104.804billion in February.
It said that the revenue rose marginally by 2.88 per cent, adding that the expenses of the corporation dipped by 12.92 per cent to N112.368 billion from N129, 034 billion recorded in previous month.
According to the report, the corporation also made a loss of N18.89 billion in the month under review. It said the loss was an improvement from a deficit of N24.23 billion recorded in February.
A breakdown of the financial performance of its subsidiaries showed that the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC), Integrated Data Services Limited (IDSL) and National Engineering and Technical Company Limited posted losses of N9.874 billion, N469 million and N69 million, respectively.
It reported that the Nigerian Gas Company recorded a profit of N5.155 billion.
“Kaduna, Port Harcourt and Warri refining companies recorded losses of N1.824 billion, N1.971 billion and N845 million, respectively, while the PPMC recorded a deficit of N923 million,’’ it added.
The report said that the deficit recorded by NPDC in February and March 2016 were due to production shut–in occasioned by vandalism of Forcados Export Line.
This, it said resulted to the loss of its entire revenue from crude oil sales of about ¦ 20 billion.
The report also put the combined value of output by the three refineries at import parity price in March 2016 at N22.93 billion, while the associated crude plus freight cost was N20.02 billion.
It said that this gave negative margin of N3.95 billion after considering overhead of N6.87 billion.
The report also said that a total of N85.66 billion was collected as sales revenue from white products sold by PPMC in the month of March 2016 compared with N85.23 billion collected in the previous month.
“Total revenues generated from the sales of white products for the period April 2015 to March 2016 stands at N775.90 billion where PMS contributed about 88.85 per cent of the revenues collected with a value of N689.41 billion”.
The NNPC recorded total export proceeds of $170.12million in the month under review with crude oil export accounting for $98.31 million, while gas export accounted for $71.81 million.
On dollar payments to Joint Venture Cash Call, it said total export proceeds of $141.87 million were recorded in March, 2016 consisting of crude oil receipt of $88.36 million.
It added that Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) and Escravos Gas to Liquid (EGTL) recorded proceed of $1.52 million and Miscellaneous receipts amounting to $51.99 million.
“The drastic slump in total export receipt is largely due to shut in of about 300,000 barrel of oil per day (bopd) at Forcados Terminal following the force majeure declared by Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) on 15th February, 2016.
“Hence, all un-lifted February and March cargoes were deferred until the repair is completed,” the report added.
Meanwhile, the Federal Government has increased the amount of crude oil being supplied to the nation’s refineries from 445,000 barrels per day to 650,000bpd.
This, however, was despite the fact that the refineries had yet to start operating at their various optimum capacities. The facilities commenced the production of petroleum products recently but not at full capacity.
The refineries are Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company, Port Harcourt Refining Company and Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company. They are managed and run by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation.
The NNPC, in its latest financial and operations report for March 2016, stated that the country’s refineries now get additional 205,000bpd of crude.
Before now, the facilities get a combined volume of 445,000bpd of crude. But in the corporation’s latest report, the government gave them 650,000bpd.

Business

Customs Seek Support To Curb Smuggling In Ogun

Published

11 hours ago

February 13, 2026

The Tide

The Nigeria Customs Service(NCS), Ogun 1 Area Command, has solicited support in fighting smuggling and other economic crimes at the Nations border.

The Area Comptroller, Olukayode Afeni made the appeal in an interview with Newsmen in Idiroko, Ogun.

The comptroller stressed the need for the public to provide timely and reliable information to the Service, saying noting that fighting smuggling is a collective effort

“I urge the general public to join hands with NCS by providing timely and credible information that would help toward suppressing smuggling and other economic crimes.”

“Together, we can build a prosperous nation where compliance is the norm, and criminality has no place,” he said.

Afeni reiterated the command’s commitment to combat smuggling, and facilitating legitimate trade, as well as generate revenue for national development.

Chinedu Wosu

Business

IFAD: Nigeria Leads Global Push For Youth, Women Investment In Agriculture

Published

12 hours ago

February 13, 2026

The Tide

The 49th Session of the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) Governing Council has concluded in Rome, with Nigeria taking a prominent leadership role in advancing global agricultural development priorities, particularly strategic investment in youth and women.

The biennial meeting, themed “From Farm to Market: Investing in Young Entrepreneurs,” underscored the growing recognition of young people as critical drivers of job creation, innovation, and inclusive economic growth across global food systems.

The session opened with the election of Nigeria’s Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyari, as Chairperson of the IFAD Governing Council.

Having previously served as Vice Chair, his emergence as Chairperson reflects the strong confidence reposed in Nigeria by Member States, recognising the country’s constructive engagement and leadership in promoting global food security.

In his acceptance remarks, Senator Kyari expressed deep appreciation to Member States for the trust placed in him, pledging to serve with humility, diligence, and a strong commitment to improving the livelihoods of rural women and men across the world.

Addressing delegates during the session, the Chairperson emphasised that prioritising youth and women in agriculture is key to unlocking economic opportunities, accelerating innovation, and driving inclusive growth.

He noted that such investments would ultimately strengthen global food systems while helping to reduce hunger and poverty.

Senator Kyari also commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for placing food security at the centre of Nigeria’s national priorities.

He noted that Nigeria’s leadership role at IFAD aligns with the President’s directive to boost agricultural productivity, expand economic opportunities for youth and women, and build resilient food systems capable of withstanding climate and market shocks.

The Minister further praised the IFAD Nigeria Country Office, led by Country Director Ms Dede Ekoue, for translating global development commitments into measurable outcomes for rural communities.

He highlighted the office’s role in strengthening agricultural value chains, empowering youth and women, and improving resilience among smallholder farmers nationwide.

Business

Expert Tasks FG On Food Imports To Protect Farmers

Published

13 hours ago

February 13, 2026

The Tide

The Federal Government has been urged to balance consumer protection with farmers’ sustainability by ensuring timely food imports, input subsidies expansion and price stabilisation mechanisms to secure investments across the agricultural value chain.

An agriculture expert, Dr Fatai Afolabi, gave the advice at a forum organised by the Plantation Owners’ Forum of Nigeria (POFON), in collaboration with the Oil Palm and Other Oil Seeds Value Chain, themed ‘Current Government Food Strategy, the Concomitant Effects and Implications for Food Security in Nigeria’, and held in Lagos, Wednesday.

Afolabi cautioned that the recent food import policies, while easing consumer prices, could undermine local farmers and long-term food security if not carefully managed.

He noted that Nigeria’s food system was navigating an exceptionally difficult period, marked by inflationary pressures, climate variability, insecurity in major food-producing regions, and rising energy and logistics costs.

He said the Federal Government’s decision to temporarily relax restrictions on selected food imports was understandable, noting that the market had responded swiftly with a reduction in prices of major staples.

However, the convener observed that while the policy had brought much-needed relief to consumers, it posed significant challenges for local farmers and agriculture value chain investors.

“While output prices have fallen, the cost of producing food in Nigeria remains stubbornly high.

“Farmers continue to contend with expensive fertilisers, rising transport costs, costly improved seeds and agrochemicals, limited access to affordable credit, poor electricity supply, weak road infrastructure, and inadequate storage and processing facilities, which result in significant post-harvest losses.

“This situation, where farmers sell produce at declining prices while production costs remain elevated, has created widespread distress across agricultural ecosystems,” he said.

Afolabi said the effects were being felt across all segments of agriculture, with rice farmers among the hardest hit.

He said reports from producing states indicated that about 3,500 rice farmers were considering exiting rice cultivation after incurring estimated losses of over N93 billion.

He added that cassava farmers were selling produce at prices that barely covered harvesting costs, leaving them unable to recover their investments.

According to him, vegetable and edible oil producers are also under pressure as imported vegetable oil brands reduce demand for locally processed alternatives.

He added that cocoa farmers continue to battle price volatility in international markets amid rising domestic labour and maintenance costs.

Afolabi noted that tree crops such as oil palm and cocoa, which require long gestation periods, were particularly vulnerable to sudden market disruptions that undermine investor confidence and discourage new investment.

He said the effects extended downstream to agro-processing and value addition, with soybean farmers supplying vegetable oil processors experiencing reduced demand and lower prices.

He said the development threatened not only farm incomes but also rural employment and agro-industrial growth, raising concerns about national food security.

According to him, sustained losses could force farmers out of production, increasing Nigeria’s dependence on food imports and exposing the country to global supply shocks, foreign exchange pressures and long-term vulnerabilities.

Afolabi cited India and the Netherlands as countries offering useful lessons in balancing consumer protection with farmer sustainability.

He said India deploys food imports strategically during shortages, while complementing them with strong domestic support systems.

He added that the Netherlands, despite being one of the world’s leading agricultural exporters, supports farmers through input subsidies, tax incentives, affordable energy, strong cooperatives, and close integration with research and extension services.

He said agricultural students in both countries also benefit from subsidised tuition, transportation and meals, as well as grants and start-up support for farm enterprises.

“This approach ensures generational continuity and innovation in the agricultural sector,” he said.

Afolabi said Nigeria’s current food import policy could play a stabilising role if complemented by deliberate measures to protect local producers.

He recommended carefully timed imports to avoid peak harvest periods, strengthened price stabilisation mechanisms, aggressive subsidies for critical farm inputs, and support for agro-processors to remain competitive.

He also called for clear communication of policy intentions to reassure farmers that import measures were strategic and temporary.

“Food imports should function as a strategic shock absorber rather than a permanent market feature.

“Government should develop and publish a national crop production and harvest calendar for major staples and align import decisions with documented supply gaps.

“Affordable food and profitable farming are not mutually exclusive goals. With thoughtful coordination and sustained support for farmers, Nigeria can achieve both,” he said.