Nigeria Senate Summons Oil Regulators Over Import Data

Lawmakers have summoned heads of three petroleum agencies to reconcile conflicting records of petrol imports for 2022 and 2023.

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The Senate Public Accounts Committee rejected the regulator's initial explanation after finding major variances in fuel import volumes compared to the national petroleum company's data.
A joint meeting with NEITI is scheduled to clarify the discrepancies.

The Nigerian Senate Committee on Public Accounts has ordered a joint hearing involving the heads of the country's main petroleum regulator, the national petroleum company, and the extractive industries transparency body. According to Punch, lawmakers rejected the initial explanation provided by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) after identifying wide gaps in its records of Premium Motor Spirit imports. The decision followed a review of the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) audit covering the 2021–2023 period.

Premium Times reported that the committee chair, Senator Ibrahim Dankwambo, announced the move on Tuesday. The core issue involves conflicting volume data; the NMDPRA logged 3.29 billion litres for 2022 and 6.02 billion litres for 2023. In contrast, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) recorded 6.27 billion litres for 2022 and 3.88 billion litres for 2023. A deputy director representing the NMDPRA chief executive told the panel that the authority maintained its figures were accurate, describing the differences as minor and under review.

However, several senators argued the variances were too large to be considered slight. Senator Abdul Ningi noted that some comparisons showed differences exceeding 50 per cent. Senator Dayo Faduyile suggested the conflicting records cast doubt on the reliability of the agencies' submissions. Senator Anietan Bassey urged for a thorough probe to ensure the public was not shortchanged by inconsistent official data. Following these objections, the committee formally rejected the NMDPRA's stance and resolved to call the three agency heads together.

The upcoming session aims to determine if the gaps stem from different reporting methods or other irregularities. Punch noted the committee expects the joint meeting to facilitate a reconciliation of the records. Premium Times added that the resolution highlights broader concerns about accountability in Nigeria's downstream petroleum sector. The agencies will need to explain why their official logs diverge so significantly for the same years.

Nigeria Senate Orders Joint Hearing on Fuel Import Data Gaps

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