NEITI publishes N2.6trn debt report for 2019 on oil companies

…Partners National assembly to recover N1.5trn taxes, fees

By Uthman Salami

The Nigerian Extractive industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) has published a N2.6trn debt report for 2019 on oil and gas companies, disclosing that companies within the sector have paid over N1.5 trillion in taxes and fees to the Federal Government of Nigeria.

This was made known by the Executive Secretary, NEITI, Dr Orji Ogbonnaya Orji on Friday.

Furthering his disclosure, the ES said the organisation worked with the National Assembly Review Committee on NEITI’s report to push for recovery of the outstanding 2019 debt from extractive companies.

Prior to this debt disclosure of about N2.6trn debt, the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) recovered $810million while the NURPC got $1.416billion, totalling $2.226bn or N900bn.

Between 2021, and so far in 2022, the NEITI boss said the agency worked with the National Assembly review committee and pushed the debtors to pay more.

Also, the FIRS got $662.9m while the NUPRC got $913.5m, reaching $1.576bn or N600bn.

The agency said the outstanding taxes and fees from the oil companies were about $2.674bn with $18.98m for the FIRS and $2.655bn for NUPRC, which is an expected N1.07trn for Nigeria and would be updated in the 2021 report planned for release this year.

The 2019 NEITI report stated that 77 oil and gas companies owed the Federal Government over N2.6trn in Petroleum Profit Tax, Company Income Tax, Education Tax, Value Added Tax, Withholding Tax, Royalties, Penalties and Concession on rentals.

Mr Orji also said the NEITI was working to release the 2021 report before the year ends, stressing that the agency is preparing for the EITI revalidation process coming up in January 2023 to determine Nigeria’s improvement in transparency in the oil and gas industry.