•Oil exploration in Nigeria
The House of Representatives says it has secured the commitment of seven oil companies to settle a sum of $37.4 million owed to the Federation Account before August 2025.
In a statement yesterday, Reps spokesman Akin Rotimi said the companies made the pledge amid the ongoing investigation by the Public Accounts Committee of the House of Representatives.
“This 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,” he said.
“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.
“The debts, some of which have accrued over a period of four years, highlight longstanding revenue leakages in the oil and gas sector.”
Rotimi said 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 listed the seven companies that have acknowledged their outstanding debts and agreed to settle them before August 2025:
1. Belema Oil
2. Panocean Oil Nigeria Ltd
3. Newcross Exploration & Production Ltd
4. Dubri Oil Company Ltd
5. Chorus Energy
6. Amni International
7. Network Exploration
He said nine companies, with a combined outstanding balance of $429.2 million, have contested the figures and requested a reconciliation process with NUPRC to verify their actual liabilities. These companies include:
1. Aradel/Niger Delta
2. Chevron
3. STAR DEEP
4. Shore Line
5. Seplat Producing Unlimited
6. Esso Erha
7. Esso Usan
8. Eroton Exploration
9. Seplat Energy
The committee directed that the reconciliation process be concluded within two weeks, after which companies must settle their confirmed debts without further delay.
Also, Rotimi said a total of 28 companies, collectively owing $1,230,708,293.14, have failed to honour invitations by the committee or respond to public notices. These companies include:
1. Addax Petroleum Exploration Nigeria Ltd
2. AITEO Groupw
3. All Grace Energy
4. Amalgamated Oil Company Nigeria Limited
5. Total E&P Nigeria (OML 100, 102, 52 & 99)
6. Bilton Energy Limited
7. Enageed Resources Limited
8. Waltersmith Petroman Limited
9. Conoil Plc
10. Continental Oil & Gas Company Ltd
11. Energia Limited
12. First E&P Ltd
13. Frontier Oil Limited
14. General Hydrocarbons Limited
15. Green Energy International Ltd
16. Nigeria Agip Exploration Ltd (NAE)
17. Neconde Energy Limited
18. Nigeria Petroleum Development Company (NPDC) – OML 60, 61 & 63
19. Lekoil Oil and Gas Investments Limited
20. Midwestern Oil and Gas Limited
21. Millennium Oil and Gas Company Limited
22. Oando Oil Ltd (OML 60, 61 & 62)
23. Heirs Holding
24. Pillar Oil Limited
25. Platform Petroleum Limited
26. Universal Energy Limited / Sinpec
27. Sahara Field Production Limited
28. Oriental Energy Resources Limited
“The Committee has given the affected companies a further grace period of one week to submit all relevant documentation regarding their statutory obligations and appear before the committee.
“Failure to comply within this timeframe will result in firm legislative and regulatory sanctions to enforce accountability and ensure compliance,” he said.
The lower legislative chamber said only two companies were found to have fully met their royalty obligations:
1. Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC)
2. Shell Nigeria Exploration & Production
