House of Representatives has secured the commitment of seven major oil companies to pay the $37,435,094.52 ,approximately ₦58 billion, owed the country before August.
This is contained in a statement issued by the Spokesman of the House of Representatives, Hon Akin Rotimi Jr., in Abuja, yesterday.
Rotimi, listed the affected companies as: Belema Oil, Panocean Oil Nigeria Ltd., Newcross Exploration and Production Ltd., Dubri Oil Company Ltd., Chorus Energy, Amni International and Network Exploration.
He said that the feat was achieved through the ongoing investigation by the Public Accounts Committee of the House.
“The commitment follows the committee’s scrutiny of financial records from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, NUPRC, which flagged significant lapses in royalty payments and reconciliation processes across the sector.
“The pledged repayment forms part of a ₦9 trillion outstanding liability queried by the Auditor-General for the Federation in his 2021 report submitted to the National Assembly”, he said.
The spokesman said that the debts, some of which had accrued over a period of four years, highlighted long-standing revenue leakages in the oil and gas sector.
“Beyond these seven companies, the committee’s investigation has uncovered $1.7 billion ,₦2.5 trillion, owed by 45 oil and gas companies in unpaid royalty payments as of December 31, 2024″, he said.
