The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on Thursday said it handed over a total sum of N3,936,145,822 recovered stolen funds to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.

The presentation was made on behalf of the Executive Chairman of the commission, Ola Olukoyede, by the Secretary to the Commission, Mohammed Hammajoda, during a brief ceremony held at the EFCC headquarters in Abuja, according to a statement by the agency.

Speaking at the event, Hammajoda reiterated the commission’s commitment to tackling economic and financial crimes across the country.

He noted that the funds were recovered through diligent investigation and the professional uncovering of fraudulent activities involving some actors within the NNPC.

“On behalf of the Executive Chairman, we will continue to put ourselves on the line to serve over 220 million Nigerians,” he said.

“Along the line, many of our colleagues have paid the price, and others will still pay the price as we continue to do our work with courage and integrity.

“We will serve and continue to serve this country. So, on behalf of the EFCC, I present the sum of Three Billion, Nine Hundred and Thirty-Six Million, One Hundred and Forty-Five Thousand, Eight Hundred and Twenty-Two Naira to you.”

Receiving the funds on behalf of the NNPC, the Executive Vice President, Downstream, Mumuni Dagazau, expressed appreciation to the commission for its role in the recovery.

Dagazau said the development underscored collaboration among institutions in the country.
“NNPC, over the years, has had its struggles and challenges, and one thing we have always tried to do is correct the system,” he said.

“When the opportunity came for this recovery from your people who handled this, it was something I was really proud of.

“I was also happy that we brought it to EFCC to help and support us. We are very excited. For me, this is a great day for us. We will continue to rely on you for assistance, and this is a real commitment for us moving forward.”

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In a statement released in the early hours of Wednesday by Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President (Information & Strategy), Tinubu announced the removal of all board members who were appointed alongside Akinyelure and Kyari in November 2023.

The newly constituted 11-member board will be led by Engineer Bashir Ojulari as the new GCEO, while Ahmadu Kida takes over as Non-Executive Chairman.

Also appointed to the board is Adedapo Segun, who replaced Umaru Ajiya as Chief Financial Officer in November 2023. The board includes six non-executive directors representing Nigeria’s geopolitical zones. They are:

Bello Rabiu (North West)

Yusuf Usman (North East)

Babs Omotowa (North Central), former Managing Director of Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG)

Austin Avuru (South-South)

David Ige (South-West)

Henry Obih (South-East).

Additionally, Mrs Lydia Shehu Jafiya, Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Finance, will represent the ministry, while Aminu Ahmed will represent the Ministry of Petroleum Resources.

The appointments take effect from 2 April 2025.

President Tinubu invoked Section 59, Subsection 2 of the Petroleum Industry Act (2021) to justify the board’s restructuring, emphasising the need to enhance operational efficiency, restore investor confidence, boost local content, drive economic growth, and advance gas commercialisation and diversification.

He also mandated the new board to conduct a strategic portfolio review of NNPC’s operations and joint venture assets to align with value-maximisation objectives.

Since assuming office in 2023, President Tinubu has pushed reforms aimed at attracting investments into Nigeria’s oil sector. In 2024, NNPC reported $17 billion in new investments. The administration now targets $30 billion in investments by 2027 and $60 billion by 2030.

Furthermore, the government aims to increase crude oil production to two million barrels per day by 2027 and three million barrels per day by 2030. Gas production is also projected to rise to eight billion cubic feet per day by 2027 and 10 billion cubic feet by 2030.

Similarly, the new board has been tasked with increasing NNPC’s share of refined crude oil output to 200,000 barrels per day by 2027 and 500,000 barrels per day by 2030.

The new NNPC Board Chairman, Ahmadu Kida, hails from Borno State. A graduate of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, he earned a civil engineering degree in 1984 and later obtained a postgraduate diploma in petroleum engineering from the Institut Francaise du Petrol (IFP) in Paris.

Kida began his career at Elf Petroleum Nigeria before joining Total Exploration and Production in 1985. He rose to become Total Nigeria’s Deputy Managing Director of Deep Water Services in 2015 and, in 2024, served as an Independent Non-Executive Director at Pan Ocean-Newcross Group. Beyond the oil sector, Kida is a former basketball player and served as President of the Nigerian Basketball Federation (NBBF).

Engineer Bashir Ojulari, the newly appointed GCEO, hails from Kwara State. Before this appointment, he was Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Renaissance Africa Energy Company. He recently led a consortium of indigenous energy firms in acquiring the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC) in a landmark $2.4 billion transaction.

Ojulari is also an alumnus of Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria, where he earned a degree in Mechanical Engineering. He began his career at Elf Aquitaine as Nigeria’s first petroleum process engineer before joining Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria in 1991. Over the years, he held key roles in Europe and the Middle East as a petroleum engineer, strategic planner, field developer, and asset manager. In 2015, he became the Managing Director of Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCO). He has also served as chairman and board trustee member of the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE Nigerian Council) and is a fellow of the Nigerian Society of Engineers.

President Tinubu expressed appreciation to the outgoing board members for their contributions to NNPC Limited, particularly their efforts in rehabilitating the Port Harcourt and Warri refineries, which resumed petroleum production after prolonged shutdowns.

He wished them success in their future endeavours.

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The Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria (PETROAN) has assured Nigerians of a reduction in the pump price of petrol within the week, following adjustments to the ex-depot price by key players in the industry.

Last week, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited and the Dangote Refinery announced a reduction in the ex-depot price of petrol to ₦899 per litre in Lagos. Despite this, the pump price at many filling stations across the country has remained unchanged.

However, PETROAN President, Billy Gilly-Harry, during a Monday appearance on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily, expressed optimism that the price change would soon reflect in retail outlets.

“But I believe from today when members start loading from both NNPC and Dangote at this new price reduction, it will reflect in the market,” he said.

Gilly-Harry lauded some members of PETROAN, particularly in Abuja, for proactively reducing their pump prices to below ₦1,000 even before the official announcement. He emphasized that while members strive to serve Nigerians by providing affordable fuel, they must maintain marginal profitability to sustain operations.

“We don’t encourage our members to try to sell products at a loss because our focus is to serve Nigerians. And the only way we can serve Nigerians is when we have the resources to do so. The resources can only be there if we’re making marginal profit enough to pay for the cost of money and ensure continuity in business,” he noted.

Addressing concerns over the delay in implementing the price reduction, Gilly-Harry explained that some retailers are still selling old stock purchased at higher prices.

“This reduction, if you apply it immediately, don’t forget that some of them bought at ₦970, paid transportation costs and logistics that have taken it quite high,” he said. “By the time it gets to their retail outlets, it’s quite much more than that. And so they must also sell at a profit – minimal marginal profit as provisioned by the PIA. So, that’s the reason.”

The PETROAN boss commended both the NNPCL and Dangote Refinery for their efforts in reducing the ex-depot price, which he described as a significant step toward easing the burden on Nigerians.

Nigerians are now hopeful that the price adjustment will translate into tangible relief at filling stations in the coming days.

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In a statement released on Monday, NNPCL’s spokesperson, Olufemi Soneye, announced that the company successfully executed its first DES LNG delivery from the 174,000m³ vessel, Grazyna Gesicka, to Futtsu, Japan, on June 27, 2024.

This milestone was achieved through the collaboration of two key Downstream subsidiaries—NNPC LNG Ltd and NNPC Shipping Ltd.

Following the successful delivery to Japan, NNPCL expanded its reach to China, completing its first DES LNG shipment to the country.

Soneye highlighted that the DES system requires the seller to deliver products to a specific port, taking full responsibility for shipping and insurance until the goods reach the designated destination. This approach demands a higher level of expertise and efficiency compared to the more commonly used Free on Board (FOB) system.

“Delivered Ex-Ship (DES) is an international commercial term that requires the seller to deliver the products at a specific port,” Soneye explained. “It requires expertise and a higher level of efficiency to execute than the Free on Board (FOB) system.”

NNPCL has been actively involved in LNG trading since 2021, with its first sale occurring in November of that year. To date, the company has traded over 20 LNG cargoes in the European and Asian markets on an FOB basis. The company is set to deliver at least two more LNG cargoes to the Asian market on a DES basis by November, with additional orders expected before the year’s end.

Dapo Segun, NNPCL’s Executive Vice President of Downstream, emphasized the financial advantages of the DES system and its strategic importance for the company.

“The DES system, apart from being more financially rewarding, allows NNPC Ltd. inroads into the downstream segment of the LNG sector and positions it to capture more market shares while building in-house capacity and ensuring that global customers are familiar with the NNPC Ltd. brand,” Segun stated.

Panos Gliatis, Managing Director of NNPC Shipping, added that the company intends to build a robust shipping portfolio, including owning vessels to provide greater flexibility to NNPC’s operations and other clients.

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Speaking on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily show on Wednesday monitored by Mega Icon Magazine, Shittu emphasised that the success of this ambitious project, which is set to process 650,000 barrels of crude oil per day, is crucial for reducing Nigeria’s long-standing dependence on fuel subsidies.

Dangote refinery to generate 12,000 megawatts of electricity – CBN hints

Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, grapples with severe energy issues.

The country’s state-owned refineries are currently non-operational, and it relies heavily on imported refined petroleum products. The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) remains the primary importer of these essential goods.

The situation has led to frequent fuel shortages, with petrol prices soaring from approximately N200 per litre to around N700 per litre since the subsidy removal in May 2023.

This surge has further exacerbated the struggles of Nigerian citizens, who rely on petrol to power their vehicles and generators amidst persistent electricity supply challenges.

Addressing questions about the possibility of reinstating the subsidy regime, the former minister acknowledged he didn’t have all the details but emphasised, “What I do know over the years is that we have been borrowing for subsidy.”

He explained, “It’s a very clear thing to understand. If you produce crude oil at say, N100 per litre because you don’t have refining facilities, you take it overseas. You pay in dollars to transport it overseas to refineries there. You pay in dollars to refine there. You pay in dollars to bring it back. Can the cost of that one litre of fuel remain N100 or even N200?”

Dangote refinery’s first product to hit market by end of July 

Shittu continued, “So, unless we can refine locally. And that is why I am complimenting Dangote and I urge that everybody should give Dangote Refinery all the support so that, for once, we can stop exporting our crude oil for refining to bring it back because it would certainly add to the cost. And if we do not want to add to the cost, then we must subsidise. To subsidise, you have to take loans.”

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A member of the opposition  Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), National Presidential Campaign Council, Adetokunbo Pearse, on Monday, said Nigerians have a right to know the actual landing cost of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS).

Speaking on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily, Pearse said thorough scrutiny should be carried out on the Managing Director of the  Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Mele Kyari, over the fluctuation of landing cost.

“The way you solve a problem is to go to the source. Let the president go and interrogate NNPCL and let us find out – announce to the country what the landing cost is so that we know exactly what we can make, and how much we can sell oil that will not cripple the economy. That’s what we need to do”.

The PDP chieftain lamented that going back to the NNPC would affect the landing cost of imported fuel.

“When you go to the NNPCL, you find out that the landing cost is so low, the price that is given. The landing cost at one point was 50 naira per litre, now it’s about 150 per litre.”

Pearse, who was the Lagos State Coordinator, Atiku/ Okowa Presidential Campaign Support Group, noted that the emergence of the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and the repair of the local refineries ought to reduce the landing cost of the product in contrast to the NNPCL boss’ comment.

“One of the reasons I said we need to go to NNPCL is this: Kyari said on this Channels that even when Dangote oil comes fully on board, the price of pump fuel will not reduce – even with the production of oil in Port Harcourt and elsewhere. That man needs to be investigated.

“Of course, if you refine your oil here, the man is already telling us that even when it is refined here, it is still not going to go down and you and I know that if we have our own refineries and we are refining the product here, the price should be more competitive,” he argued.

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The Nigerian National Petrol Company (NNPC) Limited has confirmed the hike in the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), popularly known as petrol.

This is coming some 48 hours after President Bola Tinubu announced an end to the subsidy era during his inaugural speech at Eagle Square on May 29, 2023.

NNPC spokesman, Garba Deen Muhammad, in a statement on Wednesday informed that the price of the essential commodity has been adjusted to its retail outlets nationwide.

He, however, noted that the price per litre of petrol will continue to fluctuate to reflect market dynamics.

“NNPC Limited wishes to inform our esteemed customers that we have adjusted our pump prices of PMS across our retail outlets, in line with current market realities,” the statement partly read.

“As we strive to provide you with the quality service for which we are known, it is pertinent to note that prices will continue to fluctuate to reflect market dynamics.

“We assure you that NNPC Limited is committed to ensuring a ceaseless supply of products,” it added.

The post Just In: NNPC adjusts petrol pump price first appeared on MegaIcon Magazine.

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The House of Representatives has completed plans to begin a probe for an alleged diversion of N20 billion by some staff members of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC).

At plenary on Thursday, the House set up an ad-hoc committee for the probe following the adoption of a motion by Hafiz Ibrahim Kawu (Kano).

Kawu, said NNPC staff were reported to have diverted over N20bn in the semblance of consultancy fees paid to its consultants.

He regretted that staff of the company were diverting funds at a time the Federal Government was trying to fight corruption and harness resources for infrastructure development.

“It is an unwholesome practice” that affects fortunes of the country if not checked, Kawu added.

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A pipeline has exploded in the Egbeda area of Lagos State on Friday morning.

The incident occurred at Powerline Bus Stop, around LASU/Isheri road, Isheri.

Although, no casualties have been confirmed as of the time of filling this report, however men of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), security officials, firefighters, and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) are already at the scene of the incident.

The explosion, as gathered was due to an electric pole collapse. Eyewitnesses say the fire started after the electricity cable collapsed, leading to electric sparks around the area.

The sparks were said to have gotten to a spilled content of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) around the area, thus triggering the explosion.

The post Just In: Pipeline explosion rocks Lagos community first appeared on MegaIcon Magazine.

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Its Group Managing Director, Mele Kyari, disclosed this on Wednesday in Abuja, the nation’s capital when he appeared before members of the House of Representatives Committee on Finance during a hearing on the 2022-2024 Medium Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper (MTEF/FSP).

Representatives of the Fiscal Responsibility Commission (FRC) present at the hearing informed the lawmakers that the NNPC has been declaring losses since 2018, but a substantial surplus in 2019.

Kyari, also justified the federal government’s equity share in the Dangote Refinery plant project.

He explained that taking equity in Dangote Refinery was well thought out, noting that the country now has a venture that would ensure the production of millions of litres of petrol.

His words, “Our decision to take equity in the Dangote Refinery was a very calculated and conscious decision.

“Today, we import 100 per cent of our petroleum products into this country.

“You now have a venture that will produce close to 50 million litres of petroleum product in this country where energy is an issue in every country, including the United States of America; no country will allow any venture of this nature to exist without having a seat on the board of the company”, the NNPC Chief added.

Speaking further, he informed the lawmakers that the President of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, was not keen on the part of the agreement which stated that Dangote Refinery must buy Nigeria’s crude oil.

Kyari disclosed that the corporation borrowed funds from the Afreximbank to pay for the stake in Dangote Refinery.

Allaying fears that this would affect the nation’s assets, he stated that the government has not abandoned the country’s refineries and was in the process of rehabilitating them.

The NNPC boss, also briefed the lawmakers on the issue of smuggling, as well as the committee set up and the recommendations that the NNPC should set up petrol stations in neighbouring countries to address the problem.

He believes this is not the solution, as no smuggler will buy at above Nigeria’s official price.

The NNPC chief added that the corporation was engaging with the government of the Niger Republic on the establishment of fuel stations, but he was mindful that this may be a bad business and ultimately not a solution to the problem of smuggling petroleum products.

While reacting to a question about trucks smuggling fuel out of the country daily, Kyari maintained that everyone on the value chain had been compromised.

The post When will Nigeria stop importing petrol? – NNPC hints first appeared on MegaIcon Magazine.

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