Business
NNPC Faults Claim Of Non-Remittance Of N3.2trn
The Nigerian National Pe
troleum Corporation (NNPC) has faulted the claim by the Auditor General of the Federation(AuGF) that it failed to remit N3.235 trillion to the federation in 2014.
This is contained in a statement signed by NNPC Group Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer (Finance & Accounts), Isiaka Abdulrazaq, on Wednesday in Abuja.
It would be recalled that the AuGF had, on Monday, announced that the NNPC failed to remit N3.235 trillion to the Federation Account for the period ended 31st December 2014.
“NNPC wishes to state in strong terms that the AuGF’s declaration is erroneous.
“ It should also be noted that although this period is before the New NNPC Management’s appointment in August 2015, the management still deems it fit and important to correct any misinformation about the activities of the corporation,” it said.
It added that if not corrected, it would adversely affect its current and future financial and operational plans.
It said that since the new management was appointed, it placed great emphasis on transparency, accountability and integrity.
This, it said could be seen with the initiatives such as the publication of NNPC monthly Financial and Operations Reports in all major newspapers as well as on its website.
Others include focus on cost reduction across board which had yielded a drop in monthly operational losses from N30 billion in August 2015 to three billion naira in January 2016.
“Restructuring of NNPC is focused on improving the performance and profitability of all NNPC operations,” it said.
The statement noted that the declaration by the AuGF might have been borne out of misunderstanding of how revenues from crude oil and gas sales were remitted into the Federation Account.
Clarifying the remittance process, it said NNPC was allocated 445,000 barrels per day for processing into petroleum products for distribution to the nation.
It said that any unprocessed crude sold, the proceeds were used to pay for importation of petroleum products.
“The proceeds from the sale of these products are remitted to the federation account after deducting the cost associated with the supply and distribution,” it said It added that the total amount of subsidy that had been approved and certified by PPPRA for the period of January 2012 to December 2014 was N2.34 trillion.
It noted that an additional N7.96 billion subsidy claim was still under reconciliation.
It said that losses from crude oil and petroleum products as a result of vandalism on its network of pipelines for the period of January 2012 to December 2014 was N202.68 billion.
“Petroleum Product Strategic Holding Cost and Pipeline Repairs and Maintenance Cost for the period of January 2012 to December 2014 amounted to N358.88 billion,” it said.
According to the statement, the figure owed to the Federation Account as at January 2015 Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) meeting report was N326 billion and not the N3.23 trillion alleged by the AuGF.
It said that this report did not include NNPC’s claim of N1,374 trillion as at 2009, against the federation.
“All the stakeholders in FAAC meeting are familiar with the N326.14 billion and it is already in public domain since then to date.
It said that the N1.374 trillion claims against the federation was currently being re-viewed by Ministry of Finance appointed Forensic Auditors at the instance of the Minister of Finance.
On alleged 235 million dollars transferred to undisclosed Escrow account, it said that NNPC did not have any secret Escrow accounts.
It added that the alleged 235 million dollars represent proceeds from the sale of gas feed stock to Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas Limited (NLNG) used to repay part of the Modified Carry Agreement (MCA) loans, applicable royalty to DPR and tax to FIRS.
“The MCA loan was contracted specifically to fund the development of upstream oil and gas projects whose transactions are regularly reported to FAAC as part of the reconciliation of the revenues to NNPC, FIRS and DPR.
“The MCA and all other alternative funding arrangements are annually appropriated by the National Assembly and are therefore fully disclosed to FAAC on monthly basis,” it said.
It stated that in carrying out its statutory duties, NNPC would continue to maintain the highest level of transparency and accountability.
The statement said that NNPC was ready to provide clarification on any matter relating to the federation and Nigerian people.
The United States Trade Representative (USTR) has criticised Nigeria’s import ban on 25 categories of goods, claiming that the restrictions limit market access for American exporters.
This is the effect of President Donald Trump’s tariffs introduction on goods entering the United States, with Nigeria facing a 14 per cent duty.
The USTR highlighted the impact of Nigeria’s import ban on various sectors, particularly agriculture, pharmaceuticals, beverages, and consumer goods.
The restrictions affect items such as beef, pork, poultry, fruit juices, medicaments, and alcoholic beverages, which the United States sees as significant barriers to trade.
The agency argues that these limitations reduce export opportunities for United States businesses and lead to lost revenue.
“Nigeria’s import ban on 25 different product categories impacts United States exporters, particularly in agriculture, pharmaceuticals, beverages, and consumer goods.
“Restrictions on items like beef, pork, poultry, fruit juices, medicaments, and spirits limit United States market access and reduce export opportunities.
“These policies create significant trade barriers that lead to lost revenue for United States businesses looking to expand in the Nigerian market”, the agency said .
In 2016, Nigeria implemented the ban on these 25 items as part of efforts to control imports and stimulate local production.
Some of the banned items include poultry, pork, refined vegetable oil, sugar, cocoa products, spaghetti, beer, and certain medicines.
On March 26, 2025, the Federal Government also announced plans to halt solar panel imports to encourage local manufacturing as part of its push for clean energy.
A leading agribusiness strategist and digital agriculture expert, Ayo Oluwa Okediji, has sought cooperative-driven investments in sustaining growth of poultry industry in Nigeria.
He said the poultry industry was at a defining moment and requires urgent structural reforms to secure its future and ensure long-term sustainability.
Speaking on the theme, “Strengthening Poultry Farming Through Cooperative Synergy and Strategic Investments”, at the recently concluded Oyo Mega Poultry Workshop 2025 in Ibadan, Okediji called on poultry farmers, cooperative leaders, financial institutions and policy makers to rethink the existing structure of the poultry sector.
He stressed the need to transition from fragmented, individually-driven operations to well-structured, cooperative-led enterprises capable of attracting sustainable financing and securing long-term viability.
He said, “Our poultry sector cannot thrive on individual effort alone. We need to organise ourselves into cooperative clusters, build strong governance systems and position ourselves to attract the level of investment needed to sustain this industry beyond this generation.”
Drawing on lessons from successful global cooperative models such as Rabobank in the Netherlands and Landus Cooperative in the United States, Okediji introduced the FarmClusters Poultry Model, a locally adapted solution developed by Agribusiness Dynamics Technology Limited (AgDyna), a subsidiary of AgroInfoTech Africa.
According to him, the model is currently being piloted in Oyo State in partnership with PANOY Agribusiness Limited and local poultry cooperatives.
The Rivers State Representative of the Nigeria Chambers of Commerce, Mines, Industries and Agriculture (NACCIMA), Mr. Erasmus Chukwundah, has urged palm oil farmers to consider hybrid seedlings for planting, if they must break even in palm oil business.
Chukwundah said this recently at the Free Oil Palm Business Climate Smart Best Management Practice/Assistance Training organized by Partnership Initiative In Niger Delta (PIND) for Palm Oil Farmers in Elele, Ikwerre Local Government Area.
The Rivers representative said until palm oil farmers begin to consider such hybrid oil palm seedlings, they may not meet up with the daily increasing demand of palm oil in the market.
According to him, the seedlings produce up to 30 bunches at once that ripen same time.
He said PIND decided to partner with Oil Palm Growers Association of Nigeria (OPGAN) to ensure that the message was received by the targeted audience.
According to him, palm oil remained a popular choice of industry operators as it could be converted to many other products such as vegetable cooking oil.
He also noted that products such as motor tyers, marine ropes and others are now gotten from the palm tree.
Chukwundah, who is the immediate past Director-General of Port Harcourt Chamber of Commerce, Mines, Industries, and Agriculture (PHCCIMA), further warned against use of unrecommended fertilisers in growing oil palms.
He noted that such practices could limit its export value or chances as the foreign marketers have a way of detecting such .
He reiterated the need for organic fertilizers, including poultry droppings, to enable them have a natural palm oil.
“People must reduce physical contact with palm oil production. That is why we are campaigning for hydrolic oil mills. The foreign markets are no longer interested in crude method of palm oil production”, he said.
Meanwhile, one of the farmers, Sonny Didia, who appreciated Chukwundah’s commitment towards the concern of farmers, appealed for an urgent need for loan opportunity with low interest rate in order to enable them beat the target.
King Onunwor