NEITI: Nigeria Earned $741.48bn from Oil, Gas Sales in 21 Years

The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative ((NEITI) has said that the country earned N741.48 billion from oil and gas sales between 1999 and 2020, a period of 21 years. The Executive Secretary of the organisation,

Dr Ogbonnaya Orji, who made the assertion at a stakeholders’ engagement forum on the implementation of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) in Abuja, further revealed that NEITI had conducted and published 25 cycles of audit reports in the oil and gas sector, covering the same period. Orji said that from the reports, the amount accrued to the Nigerian government from the oil and gas sector during the period, stressing that NEITI had recently embarked on an expansion of its operations to support government’s revenue growth plan.

“The 2021 oil and gas sector audit is currently ongoing and will soon be released,” Orji added.

“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 government’s revenue growth plan and resources mobilisation,” he explained.

He expressed delight that NEITI’s reports had led to the recovery of several billions of dollars by government from companies operating in the sector. According to him, the recommendations made by NEITI in its reports also triggered huge reforms in the sector.

Orji assured that NEITI would provide the information and data in the oil and gas sector that would help the Presidential Steering Committee (PSC), of which it is a member, to effectively implement the PIA.