The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative has announced a review of divestments involving 26 oil blocks worth $6.03 billion by five International Oil Companies.

The executive director of NEITI, Orji Ogbonnaya Orji, disclosed this during its first quarter media briefing in Abuja.

The transactions include notable sales such as Shell to Renaissance ($2.4 billion), ExxonMobil to Seplat ($1.28 billion), and TotalEnergies to Chappal ($860 million).

Mr Orji said the oil and gas divestments were reshaping Nigeria’s industry, hence the need to ensure that the divestments adhered to due process.

He said NEITI would strengthen collaborations with the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited to ensure full disclosure of financial, social, and environmental aspects of divestments.

“NEITI recognises the urgent need for transparency in these transactions to protect national interests, host communities, and revenue flows.

“To achieve this, NEITI will expand industry reports to include dedicated sections on divestments. We will intensify collaboration with NNPC Ltd. and other government agencies to disclose forward sales data.

“NEITI will promote greater public awareness and engagement in asset transfers and ensure transparency in forward sales (pre-sales of crude oil and gas) to impact government revenues and fiscal stability,’’ he said.

Mr Orji, while emphasising ensuring due process and proper environmental remediation in these deals, expressed concerns over unresolved environmental issues in oil-producing communities.

He called for collaboration with regulatory bodies such as NUPRC and the Ministry of Environment to ensure transparency and enforce accountability for clean-up costs and remediation efforts.

Mr Orji expressed concern that some of the divestments might not have properly addressed environmental issues raised by oil-producing communities.

Also, following complaints of inadequate supply of crude oil by local refineries, NEITI said it would review the forward sales of Nigeria’s crude oil by the Federal Government in exchange for loans.

He stated that Nigeria had earned $831 billion from oil and gas in the past 23 years when NEITI began the conduct of the audit of the sector.

He also disclosed that over $4.85 billion had been recovered from the disclosures of $8.26 billion made in its 2021 oil and gas report.

“As we commence the 2024 Oil, Gas, and Solid Minerals Reports, we will expand our reporting framework to address forward sales and pre-export financing transactions,” he said.

The executive secretary said while Nigeria had made progress in ensuring transparency in the oil and gas and solid minerals sectors, a lot of work still needed to be done regarding institutional constraints and funding limitations. 

(NAN)