We are not owing international oil traders $6.8bn – NNPCL clarifies

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has debunked reports in the media that it owes international oil traders up to $6.8 billion and that it has not remitted any money to the Federation Account since January, 2024. The company disclosed this in a statement signed by its Chief Corporate Communications Manager, Olufemi Soneye, where […]

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has debunked reports in the media that it owes international oil traders up to $6.8 billion and that it has not remitted any money to the Federation Account since January, 2024.

The company disclosed this in a statement signed by its Chief Corporate Communications Manager, Olufemi Soneye, where it stated that it had regularly paid its taxes to the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).

NNPCL said that since the oil trading business was carried out on credit, it was normal for it (NNPCL) to owe at one time or the other.

However, it said that its subsidiaries were paying up their obligation on a first-in-first-out (FIFO) basis.

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It further explained that the NNPCL and its subsidiaries had regularly paid their taxes to the FIRS, coupled with the road Company Income Tax (CIT) under the Road Investment Tax Credit Scheme.

It stated that the NNPCL was the largest contributor to the federal allocation shared every month.

The statement reads in part: “That NNPCL does not owe the sum of $6.8bn to any international trader(s). In the oil trading business, transactions are carried out on credit. So, it is normal to owe at one point or the other. But NNPCL, through its subsidiary, NNPC Trading, has many open trade credit lines from several traders. The company is paying its obligations of related invoices on a FIFO basis.”

‘NMDPRA is in charge of quality and quantity of petroleum products’

The NNPCL also stated that it had no involvement in the quality or quantity assessment of imported petroleum products as it was not a regulatory body.

The company clarified that the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) was the independent agency responsible for such matters and did not report to NNPCL