Nigeria’s earnings from oil, gas hits $741billion in 22 years ― NEITI

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2 years ago

The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) on Tuesday, puts the total earnings from oil and gas between 1999 to 2020 at $741.4 billion.

This was even as it disclosed that 25 cycles of audit reports covering the period had been published.

The Agency’s Executive Secretary, Dr Orji Ogbonnaya Orji, made the disclosure in Abuja at a stakeholders’ engagement forum on the implementation of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).

According to him, the audit reports have led to the recovery of monies owed to the government by IOCs operating in the country adding also that this has helped track government spending and digitization of those revenues, as well as company payments.

He disclosed that the 2021 oil and gas sector audit is currently ongoing and will soon be released, stressing that NEITI was embarking on an expansion of its operations to support the government’s revenue growth plan.

“This is guided by a five-year strategic plan (2022-2026) which will enable the agency to establish a presence and operate at sub-national levels to support the government’s revenue growth plan and resources mobilisation,” he added.

He assured that NEITI would provide the information and data in the oil and gas sector that would help the Presidential Steering Committee to effectively implement the PIA.

“As an agency charged with promoting transparency and accountability in the extractive sector, NEITI has the responsibility to facilitate and strengthen participation by diverse stakeholders for a successful implementation of the PIA,” he said.

While stressing the need for effective implementation of the PIA, he noted that the PIA provided wider roles for NEITI in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector, clearly spelling out the need for transparency and accountability.

“Therefore, the implementation of the Act and full operationalisation of its provisions are of great interest to NEITI and its stakeholders.

“NEITI has been working with relevant stakeholders and leveraging on our experience and exposure in the oil and gas sector to ensure that the implementation of the PIA delivers its objective and desired results,” Orji said.

On his part, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Group Chief Executive Officer, Malam Mele Kyari, said the PIA was built on the principles of competitiveness, and fair and equitable sharing of risks.

Speaking through the Chief Financing Officer, Umar Ajiya, he said these principles are guided and have economic growth through increased monetization of crude oil and increased production of gas.

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