Energy
SERAP Drags Adelabu, NBET to Court Over Missing N128 Billion
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has filed a lawsuit against the Minister of Power Mr Adebayo Adelabu and Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc., (NBET), Abuja “over the failure to account for the missing or diverted N128 billion of public funds from the Ministry of Power and NBET.”
The grave allegations are documented in the latest annual report published by the Auditor-General on 9 September 2025. Corruption contributes significantly to the frequent grid collapses, as Nigerians last week witnessed the first grid collapse of 2026, plunging the country into darkness.
In the suit number FHC/ABJ/CS/143/2026 filed last Friday at the Federal High Court in Abuja, SERAP is seeking: “an order of mandamus to direct and compel Mr Adelabu and NBET to account for the missing or diverted ₦128 billion from the ministry of power and NBET.”
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The SERAP is also seeking: “an order of mandamus to direct and compel Mr Adelabu and NBET to disclose details of how the missing or diverted ₦128 billion was spent including the dates of disbursement and the purported beneficiaries or contractors, who received the money as well as their registered business names and addresses.”
The SERAP is seeking: “an order of mandamus to direct and compel Mr Adelabu and NBET to disclose the full names, official designations, and offices of all public officers who authorized, approved, or otherwise participated in the release of the missing or diverted ₦128 billion in the ministry of power and NBET.”
In the suit, the SERAP is arguing that: “Nigerians continue to pay the price for the widespread and grand corruption in the power sector. There is a legitimate public interest in ensuring justice and accountability for these grave allegations.”
The SERAP is also arguing that, “Granting the reliefs sought would contribute to tackling corruption in the power sector and addressing the persistent breakdown of transmission lines in the country, as well as improving access of Nigerians to regular and uninterrupted electricity supply.”
The SERAP is arguing that, “granting the reliefs sought would also strike a blow against the impunity of those responsible for the missing or diverted public money meant to provide Nigerians with access to regular and uninterrupted electricity supply.”
According to the SERAP, “Ordinary Nigerians continue to pay the price for corruption in the electricity sector–staying in darkness, but still made to pay crazy electricity bills.”
The lawsuit filed on behalf of the SERAP by its lawyers, Kolawole Oluwadare, Kehinde Oyewumi, and Andrew Nwankwo, read in part: “These grim allegations by the Auditor-General suggest a grave violation of the public trust, the Nigerian Constitution 1999 [as amended] and international anticorruption standards.”
“According to the recently published 2022 audited report by the Auditor-General of the Federation, the Federal Ministry of Power failed to account for over N4.4 billion [N4,404,647,938.53] ‘transferred to Mambilla, Zungeru and Kashimbilla project accounts by the Ministry.’”
“There was ‘no evidence of how the funds were expended.’ The Auditor-General fears ‘the money may have been diverted.’ He wants the money recovered and remitted to the treasury.”
“The Ministry also paid over N95 billion [N95,415,183,701.83] to ‘some contractors for various projects.’ But ‘there was no document on the payments, and no evidence that the projects existed and were executed.’ The Auditor-General fears ‘the money may have been diverted.’ He wants the money recovered.”
“The Ministry paid over N33 million [N33,557,959.00] ‘for foreign travels’, but ‘without any approvals.’ The money ‘was paid as estacode, flight tickets, visa fees and other allowances to enable the minister and his aides to attend the World Utilities Congress at Abu Dhabi and Huawei innovation land exhibition in Dubai.”
“The travels ‘were never approved by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation or the Head of Civil Service.’ The Auditor-General fears ‘the money may have been diverted.’ He wants the money recovered and remitted to the treasury.”
“The Ministry failed to account for over N230 million [N230,795,255.27] being ‘expenditure on the GIGMIS platform.’ The Auditor-General fears ‘the money may have been diverted.’ He wants the money recovered and remitted to the treasury.”
“The Ministry also paid over N282 million [N282,672,576.53] as ‘non-personal advances to various staff of the ministry for the procurement of goods and services.’ But the ‘payments were beyond the statutory threshold of N200,000.00.’ The Auditor-General fears ‘the money may have been diverted.’ He wants the money recovered.”
“The Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Plc., (NBET) Abuja also ‘irregularly awarded contracts for over N427 million [N427,491,866.16]. There was ‘no evidence of advert placements in the procurement journal’.”
“The Auditor-General fears ‘the contracts may have been awarded to incompetent contractors’, resulting in ‘loss of government funds.’”
“NBET ‘irregularly transferred over N7 billion [N7,620,840,000.00] into purported sub-accounts of unnamed beneficiaries.’ There was also ‘no authority for such payment, contrary to the Financial Regulations.’”
“NBET claimed it paid over N9.3 billion [N9,336,986,697.17] to Egbin Power PLC ‘as outstanding payment on GenCos for Power Sector Reform Programme.’ But there ‘was no document to authenticate the genuineness of the transactions.’ The Auditor-General fears ‘the money may have been diverted.’ He wants the money recovered.”
“NBET paid over N8 billion [N8,027,355,487.20] ‘to some beneficiaries’ but ‘without entering the transaction into the payment vouchers register and the vote book.’ The Auditor-General fears ‘the money may have been diverted and misapplied.’ He wants the money recovered and remitted to the treasury.”
“NBET also reportedly ‘awarded contracts of over N420 million [N420,665,525.65] to eleven ineligible consultants.’ The payments ‘were for various consultancy services such as technical support on power plant capacity testing of 5 power plants.’ But there was ‘no evidence that the services paid for were rendered.’”
“The ‘engagement of the consultants also failed to meet due process as required by the Procurement Act.’ The Auditor-General fears ‘the money may have been diverted.’ He wants the money recovered and remitted to the treasury.”
“NBET also failed to account for ‘payments of over N45 million [N45,851,647.92] as contingency, logistics and security charges for six contracts.’ The payments were ‘made without any application from the contractors and without any approval.’”
“There was ‘no breakdown of the expenditure’. The Auditor-General fears ‘the money may have been diverted’ or the payments ‘may be for work not done.’ He wants the money recovered and remitted to the treasury.”
“NBET spent over N61 million [N61,775,659.75] from the capital vote on consultancy services but without any provision made for it in the approved capital budget of the company.’ The ‘payments were also made without any approval for virement.’ The Auditor-General fears ‘the money may have been diverted’ or ‘may have been misapplied.’ He wants the money refunded to the treasury.”
“NBET also ‘irregularly awarded contract of over N39 million [N39,661,081.83] for the supply and installation of a video conferencing solution to the NBET office.’ But ‘there was no evidence of any work done.’”
“The same contract ‘was re-awarded to another contractor without any open competitive bidding, such as advertisement, quotations, and financial bid evaluation.’ There was also ‘no evidence that any job was completed.’’”
“NBET ‘paid over N49 million [N49,995,000.00] for the supply of three units of Toyota Corolla, 2019 model’, but the contract was awarded without any approval.’ There was ‘no Bureau of Public Procurement approval, minutes of tenders board approvals and technical and financial evaluation reports.’”
“NBET also ‘paid over N8 million [N8,744,186.05] as legal fees to a legal practitioner.’ But the payment was ‘without the approval of the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation.’”
“NBET also ‘irregularly paid over N8.9 million [N8,928,000.00] for the professional development program of five officers working in the organization.’ The payment ‘was made as reimbursement of the balance of the course fee.’ The Auditor-General fears ‘the money may have been diverted.’ He wants the money recovered.”
“NBET also spent over N1 billion [N1,100,279,895.20] ‘as extra-budgetary spending’, but without any approval from the Minister of Finance and the National Assembly.’ The Auditor-General fears ‘the money may have been misappropriated and misapplied.’ He wants the money refunded and remitted to the treasury.”
“NBET also ‘paid over N110 million [N110,556,502.00] to companies and retail supermarkets for staff to pick items and promotion packages for Easter and Salah between 2021 and 2022.’ The payments ‘were made without any document.’’”
“Section 13 of the Nigerian Constitution imposes responsibility on the ministry of power and NBET to conform to, observe and apply the provisions of Chapter 2 of the constitution. Section 15(5) imposes the responsibility on the ministry and NBET to abolish all corrupt practices and abuse of power.”
“Article 26 of the UN Convention against Corruption which Nigeria has ratified requires the ministry of power and NBET to ensure ‘effective, proportionate and dissuasive sanctions’ in cases of grand corruption.”
“Article 26 complements the more general requirement of article 30, paragraph 1, that sanctions must take into account the gravity of the corruption allegations.”
No date has been fixed for the hearing of the suit.
Winners of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission’s (NUPRC) 2025 Licensing Round have 90 days from receiving their offer letters to either meet all award conditions or forfeit the assets.
Chief Executive of NUPRC, Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, disclosed this aspect of the terms on Tuesday in Abuja, at the opening of the Commercial Bid Conference for the round.
According to her, being named a winner does not automatically mean a Petroleum Prospecting Licence (PPL) has been granted.
She maintained that winners must still provide guarantees, pay a signature bonus and first-year rent, then sign contractual documents before a licence is issued.
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She disclosed that any bidder who misses the 90-day deadline loses the asset and the NUPRC will then offer it to the next-ranked bidder on its reserve list.
Eyesan said the Commission has no interest in acreage sitting idle in the hands of non-performing companies.
“The government is not seeking speculative holders of acreage; it is seeking partners with the capacity, discipline and commitment to deliver measurable production and economic value,” she said.
She put it more bluntly for the winning bidders: an award “is not a trophy to be held,” but an obligation to invest, drill, develop and produce. Her message to them was simple — “drill or drop.”
The exercise drew interest from about 300 companies for 50 available assets. Of these, 196 companies cleared prequalification, and 143 firms went on to submit 200 technical and commercial bids covering 37 assets.
Eyesan said the assets could add roughly 500 million barrels to Nigeria’s crude oil and condensate reserves, which currently stand at 37.01 billion barrels, plus access to gas reserves of 215.19 trillion cubic feet. Fully developed, the fields could add at least 300,000 barrels per day of crude and condensate production within three years — output NUPRC is counting toward Nigeria’s goal of 3 million barrels a day by 2030.
Beyond output, she said the projects would mean higher government revenue, stronger foreign exchange earnings, more jobs, deeper local content, and technology transfer.
Eyesan said NUPRC would judge the round’s success not by how many winners are named, but by how fast those awards turn into real activity — from paperwork to seismic surveys, to drilling, to development, to production.
In return for requiring performance, she said the Commission would offer operators a stable environment: clear guidance, predictable regulatory decisions, and quick intervention when genuine problems arise.
The Nigerian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) monitored key stages of the process, which Eyesan said was carried out in line with President Bola Tinubu’s directive that it meet international best practices.
She also confirmed that Tinubu has approved a new licensing round for 2026, and encouraged companies that did not win assets this time to stay engaged, as NUPRC plans to keep running rounds regularly to sustain exploration and replenish reserves.
The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, has declared that the Petroleum Industry Act has ended the discretionary allocation of oil blocks in Nigeria.
He expressed the view on Tuesday in Abuja during the 2025 Licensing Round, marked by the successful conclusion of the commercial bid conference. “The PIA, unfortunately for some people, has prevented discretionary allocation of oil blocks,” he said jokingly.
He stressed that the law guarantees fairness and credibility, assuring investors that no one knows the content of commercial bids before they are officially opened. Lokpobiri also warned successful bidders against treating licences as speculative assets.
“In the past, I have seen people go round conferences across the world carrying licences and looking for partners who never came. Those days must be over. The licences issued today must translate into actual field development and production,” he said.
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Also speaking, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo, said the licensing round reflected the Federal Government’s commitment to transparency, competitiveness and credibility.
“The Federal Government remains firmly committed to creating an enabling environment that attracts investment, accelerates exploration and production, and unlocks the full value of Nigeria’s hydrocarbon resources,” Ekpo said.
Fuel marketers have resumed loading petrol and diesel from private depots after an almost one-week disruption triggered by recent price adjustments in the downstream petroleum sector.
The National Publicity Secretary of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Chinedu Ukadike, told a correspondent on Tuesday that private depots had resumed selling petroleum products to marketers, dismissing fears of an imminent fuel scarcity.
Although some filling stations did not dispense petrol on Monday and Tuesday, Ukadike said marketers were only being cautious because of the prevailing volatility in fuel prices, particularly amid the ongoing Middle East crisis.
He explained that depot owners temporarily suspended loading operations to adjust prices and request top-up payments from marketers who had already paid for products before the latest price increase. Ukadike, however, noted that depot owners do not refund marketers when prices fall below the amount previously paid for products.
Speaking on the Dangote Petroleum Refinery’s newly introduced dollar-for-fuel policy, Ukadike said he could not confirm whether marketers had started paying in dollars for products loaded through the refinery’s gantry in Lekki, Lagos.
“Marketers have started loading in other depots. You know, once there is a price change, they will stop and take their stock, then reset their prices around the rest of them. Then also look at the tickets they have sold before and see how they will do top-up. What we call top-up is the differential of the former price, so they can buy at the current price. These are the exercises that are ongoing. And once they are ongoing, you cannot load,” he said.
He added, “I know that Dangote has fixed its price in dollars, but no marketer has ever informed me that they have paid in dollars, especially those loading from the gantry. But for offshore loading or coastal loading, I can assure you that it will be paid in dollars. But for gantry loading, I don’t know. By tomorrow, I will confirm.”
Meanwhile, petrol loading prices rose further across major private depots in Lagos on Tuesday, with marketers paying up to N1,275 per litre amid continued uncertainty in the downstream petroleum market following the Dangote Petroleum Refinery’s transition to dollar-denominated transactions.
Depot price data obtained by The PUNCH from Petroleumprice.ng showed that loading prices in Lagos increased by N25 per litre at most depots. African Terminal, ASCON, Gulf Treasure, Integrated, Matrix, NIPCO, Pinnacle, Sahara and T.Time all raised their ex-depot prices from N1,250 to N1,275 per litre.
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However, prices were mixed in other parts of the country, as some depots retained their previous rates while others recorded marginal reductions.
In Port Harcourt, Bulk Strategic and Masters retained their petrol prices at N1,265 per litre. Liquid Bulk reduced its price by N3 from N1,268 to N1,265 per litre, while Matrix cut its loading price by N15 from N1,280 to N1,265 per litre. Sigmund also sold petrol at N1,265 per litre.
In Calabar, Hong Petroleum reduced its price by N15 from N1,270 to N1,255 per litre, while Sobaz increased its loading price by N10 to N1,265 per litre.
In Warri, Matrix increased its depot price by N5 to N1,265 per litre, while Optima raised its price by N10 to N1,270 per litre. Rain Oil retained its price at N1,270 per litre, while Prudent sold the product at N1,270 per litre.
Diesel prices also edged higher at some depots. In Lagos, African Terminal, Duport, Gulf Treasure, Ibachem and Wosbab increased their diesel prices by N10 to N1,600 per litre, while Ibeto retained its price at N1,590 per litre. Integrated quoted N1,600 per litre.
In Port Harcourt, Sigmund increased its diesel price by N5 from N1,615 to N1,620 per litre, while Sahara sold the product at N1,600 per litre. In Warri, Prudent raised its diesel price by N10 to N1,610 per litre, NIPCO retained its price at N1,680 per litre, while Rain Oil sold diesel at N1,600 per litre.
The latest price adjustments highlight the persistent volatility in the downstream petroleum market following the Dangote Petroleum Refinery’s decision to sell petrol to marketers in dollars, a development that continues to influence depot prices across the country.
While loading activities at the Dangote refinery were said to be low-key, fuel importers appeared to be taking advantage of the situation, even as consumers continued to bear the burden of higher pump prices nationwide.
Courtesy – The Punch
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