The House of Representatives has disclosed that seven major operators in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry have pledged to remit a total of $37,435,094.52 (approximately N58 billion) to the Federation Account before August 2025, acknowledging their outstanding financial obligations.
This revelation was made in a statement signed by Rep. Akin Rotimi Jr., Spokesperson for the House of Representatives, on Sunday, as part of the ongoing investigation into the oil and gas sector by the House’s Public Accounts Committee.
Earlier reports indicated that the House had summoned 48 oil companies operating in Nigeria to appear before the Committee on Public Accounts to address an outstanding debt of approximately N9.4 trillion.
Breakdown of the Investigations
A press release from the Office of the House Spokesperson last Monday detailed that numerous oil companies allegedly owe the Federation Account an estimated N9.4 trillion.
Among the companies summoned were major industry players, including:
- Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company
- Chevron Nigeria Ltd
- Total E&P Nigeria
- Seplat Energy
- Oando Oil Ltd
- Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited
The investigation follows findings in the Auditor-General’s Annual Report on the Consolidated Financial Statement for the year ending December 31, 2021.
The accumulated debt, recorded as of the last quarter of 2024, comprises unpaid royalties, concession rentals, gas flare penalties, and obligations from Production Sharing Contracts, Repayment Agreements, and Modified Carry Arrangements.
Companies Committed to Debt Repayment
According to the statement, seven companies—Belema Oil, Pan Ocean Oil Nigeria Ltd, Newcross Exploration & Production Ltd, Dubri Oil Company Ltd, Chorus Energy, Amni International, and Network Exploration—have acknowledged their outstanding debts and committed to settling them before August 2025.
The committee highlighted that this commitment followed a review of financial records from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), which identified significant lapses in royalty payments and reconciliation processes within the industry.
Beyond these seven companies, the investigation uncovered an additional $1.7 billion (N2.5 trillion) owed by 45 oil and gas companies in unpaid royalty payments as of December 31, 2024.
Companies Contesting Liabilities
The statement also noted that nine companies, with a combined outstanding balance of $429.2 million, have disputed their recorded debts and requested a reconciliation process with NUPRC to verify their actual liabilities. These companies include:
- Aradel/Niger Delta
- Chevron
- STAR DEEP
- Shoreline
- Seplat Producing Unlimited
- Esso Erha
- Esso Usan
- Eroton Exploration
- Seplat Energy
The committee has directed that the reconciliation process be completed within two weeks, after which companies must settle their confirmed debts without further delay.
Companies That Failed to Appear
The committee also expressed concern over 28 companies that failed to appear before it within the stipulated period. These companies collectively owe $1,230,708,293.14 and have not responded to invitations or public notices issued by the committee.
The companies include:
- Addax Petroleum Exploration Nigeria Ltd
- AITEO Group
- All Grace Energy
- Amalgamated Oil Company Nigeria Limited
- Total E&P Nigeria (OML 100, 102, 52 & 99)
- Bilton Energy Limited
- Enageed Resources Limited
- Waltersmith Petroman Limited
- Conoil Plc
- Continental Oil & Gas Company Ltd
- Energia Limited
- First E&P Ltd
- Frontier Oil Limited
- General Hydrocarbons Limited
- Green Energy International Ltd
- Nigeria Agip Exploration Ltd (NAE)
- Neconde Energy Limited
- Nigeria Petroleum Development Company (NPDC) – OML 60, 61 & 63
- Lekoil Oil and Gas Investments Limited
- Midwestern Oil and Gas Limited
- Millennium Oil and Gas Company Limited
- Oando Oil Ltd (OML 60, 61 & 62)
- Heirs Holdings
- Pillar Oil Limited
- Platform Petroleum Limited
- Universal Energy Limited / Sinpec
- Sahara Field Production Limited
- Oriental Energy Resources Limited
The committee has granted these companies an additional one-week grace period to submit all relevant documentation regarding their statutory obligations and appear before the committee. It warned that failure to comply within the stipulated timeframe would result in firm legislative and regulatory sanctions.
Fully Compliant Companies
The committee also confirmed that only two companies had fully met their royalty obligations:
- Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC)
- Shell Nigeria Exploration & Production
Legislative Commitment to Compliance
The House Committee on Public Accounts reaffirmed its commitment to ensuring that all oil and gas companies operating in Nigeria adhere to their statutory payment obligations under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).
“The committee will continue to intensify oversight to recover outstanding revenues and plug revenue leakages in the industry,” the statement reads.
The House of Representatives emphasized that companies benefiting from Nigeria’s natural resources must comply with statutory financial obligations to support national development.
