Oil
Stolen Oil funds: President Buhari demands Fuel imports as payback from implicated oil marketers
ABUJA-Facing a huge cash crisis, President Muhammadu Buhari has resorted to unusual strategies for recovering some of the funds stolen from Nigeria’s treasury through a series of shady deals between former Petroleum Minister Diezani Alison-Madueke and a group of indigenous oil companies and oil marketers she and former President Goodluck Jonathan favored.
Former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, brought the part of the illicit deals to public attention when he alerted Nigerians that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) had failed to deposit $20 billion of oil revenues with the CBN. In addition, Mrs. Alison-Madueke had inked some deals, with the blessing of former President Jonathan, involving oil swaps and the transfer of certain oil wells reclaimed from multinational oil companies to shady Nigerian operators, including Jide Omokore and Kola Aluko.
An investigation by SaharaReporters discovered that President Buhari’s administration has begun the difficult and complex process of retrieving some of the missing petro-billions. One approach so far adopted by the new president is aimed at addressing the fuel scarcity that has harmed the Nigerian economy and threatens to paralyze the country’s economic activities, according to highly placed officials in the government.
But one exception involves Mr. Omokore whose Atlantic Atlantic Energy Oil Company was involved in the controversial concession of oil wells. A source at the Presidency told SaharaReporters that Mr. Omokore had volunteered to return $500 million to the Federal Government. However, the source added that President Buhari nixed the deal based on information that Mr. Omokore, believed to be a front for Mr. Jonathan and Mrs. Alison-Madueke, is in possession of $4.5 billion of funds that should have been deposited in the federation account.
The sources told SaharaReporters that the government’s immediate strategy involved targeting oil marketers and companies “caught red-handed in stealing huge sums of oil subsidies and oil revenues.” The government has pressured these companies and their owners to agree to repay the stolen monies traced to them by immediately importing more fuel into Nigeria.
The sources said the Buhari government has recorded significant early success in getting some oil marketers and their companies to accept the fuel-for-funds deals. “A number of them have agreed to import massive levels of fuel in lieu of the funds they received in shady transactions during the Jonathan administration,” one Presidency source claimed.
Another source revealed that the administration had started out by putting pressure on former Petroleum Minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke. She was reportedly quick to deny responsibility for the illicit deals with the oil marketers. Instead, she squealed on her subordinates in the NNPC, accusing them of structuring and doctoring the deals that robbed Nigeria of billions of dollars.
“The [Buhari] government got her to write a formal account of her allegations against some NNPC officials and oil companies. What she put down gave a picture of how some of the funds went missing. The document was then forwarded to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in the form of a petition,” one source said.
Mrs. Alison-Madueke’s “petition” reportedly named all the persons involved in the massive fraud in the oil sector, including some past and serving officials of the NNPC. Our sources said those she implicated in the NNPC include the current General Managing Director (GMD), Haruna Momoh, a former GMD, Austen Oniwon, Reginald Stanley and Sam Okeke, a former Group General Manager, New Business Division of the NNPC.
An EFCC source told SaharaReporters that a crack team of investigators was currently working on the former minister’s petition. He said the document had revealed new facts previously unknown by EFCC agents and Nigeria’s intelligence officials at Department of State Services (DSS). Among the scams disclosed by the former minister is information that at least four companies involved in an oil swap deal had not accounted for huge sums that should have been remitted to the account of the Nigerian government.
Among the companies implicated in her “petition,” Transfigura was reportedly unable to account for $80 million, Televeras $111million, while Aiteo apparently gulped down $150 million. Other oil firms named in the defrauding of the Nigerian people are Ontario, which failed to account for $135 million, and Sahara Energy, accused of skipping the payment of $120 million to the government.
Our EFCC source revealed that two companies, Transfigura and Sahara Energy, had made some gesture towards paying back some missing funds. However, a source at the Presidency told our correspondent that “so far the reconciliation has involved just paperwork and has not scratched the heart of the scam.” Investigators described Aiteo and Ontario as particularly problematic because they have completely cooked their records. An investigator also disclosed that the two companies are most directly linked to Mrs. Alison-Madueke and former President Jonathan. Both Ms. Alison-Madueke and Mr. Jonathan are currently in the UK, with the former Petroleum Minister reportedly undergoing a weeklong cancer therapy.
Some of the companies have agreed in principle to return the funds by bartering imported fuel for the funds they acquired illegally.
Our sources disclosed that other downstream companies caught in the storm of missing and stolen funds include Forte Oil, owned by businessman Femi Otedola, Folawiyo Energy, and, Oando, owned by Wale Tinubu and Honeywell Oil Company owned by Oba Otudeko.
Officials of the Buhari administration declined to give official confirmation of the stolen assets recovery process relating to other officials of the Jonathan Presidency.
Saharareporters-
Oil
FG Introduces New Incentives To Revitalize Nigeria’s Oil & Gas Industry
In a strategic move to revitalize Nigeria’s oil and gas sector, the Federal Government has unveiled two key fiscal incentives aimed at attracting investment and enhancing energy security.
The announcement was made by Mr. Wale Edun, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy on Wednesday.
The first initiative, the Value Added Tax (VAT) Modification Order 2024, introduces critical exemptions for essential energy products and infrastructure, including Diesel, Feed Gas, Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), Electric Vehicles, Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) infrastructure, and Clean Cooking Equipment.
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These exemptions are designed to reduce living costs for Nigerians, promote energy security, and accelerate the transition to cleaner energy alternatives.
The second initiative, the Notice of Tax Incentives for Deep Offshore Oil & Gas Production, offers new tax relief options for deep offshore exploration projects.
This measure aims to position Nigeria’s deep offshore basin as a premier destination for international oil and gas investments, boosting the country’s appeal to foreign investors.
These reforms are part of a broader set of policy initiatives, known as Policy Directives 40-42, endorsed by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
The directives reflect the administration’s commitment to fostering sustainable development in the energy sector and enhancing Nigeria’s competitive edge in the global oil and gas market.
Business
Tinubu set to approve ExxonMobil-Seplat oil deal, expands CNG bus initiative
By Yemie Adeoye
NIGERIA’s President Bola Tinubu has announced that the protracted ExxonMobil-Seplat upstream oil divestment will be formally approved by the Minister of petroleum within a matter of days, just as he announced his government’s intention to expand the Compress natural Gas, CNG buses initiative.
The President who stated this during his Independence day nationwide broadcast stated that the move is in line with his administration’s commitment to free enterprise, free entry and free exit in investments which is the hallmark of his administration investment policy.
“Fellow compatriots, our administration is committed to free enterprise, free entry, and free exit in investments while maintaining the sanctity and efficacy of our regulatory processes. This principle guides the divestment transactions in our upstream petroleum sector, where we are committed to changing the fortune positively. As such, the ExxonMobil Seplat divestment will receive ministerial approval in a matter of days, having been concluded by the regulator, NUPRC, in line with the Petroleum Industry Act, PIA. This was done in the same manner as other qualified divestments approved in the sector.”
The President also seized the opportunity to plead with Nigerians to be patient with his administration’s reform policies. “As your President, I assure you that we are committed to finding sustainable solutions to alleviate the suffering of our citizens. Once again, I plead for your patience as the reforms we are implementing show positive signs, and we are beginning to see light at the end of the tunnel”.
“Our energy transition programme is on course. We are expanding the adoption of the Presidential Initiative on Compressed Natural Gas for mass transit with private sector players. The Federal Government is ready to assist the thirty-six States and FCT in acquiring CNG buses for cheaper public transportation.
Fellow Nigerians, while we are working to stabilise the economy and secure the country, we also seek to foster national unity and build social harmony and cohesion. Our economy can only thrive when there is peace”. he enthused.
Oil
ExxonMobil To Invest $10bn In Nigeria’s Deep-Water Oil Operations
As part of the administration’s push to improve Ease of Doing Business (EoDB), Nigeria’s Vice President Kashim Shettima has expressed support for ExxonMobil’s plan to invest $10 billion in the country’s deep-water oil sector.
Speaking on Wednesday, September 25, 2024, during a meeting with ExxonMobil executives at the 79th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) in New York, Shettima called the investment “a clear testament to the administration’s economic reforms and investor-friendly policies.”
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This announcement follows news that international maritime company DP World intends to develop a multibillion-dollar port project in Nigeria.
Stanley Nkwocha, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications, shared the development in a statement on Wednesday. He quoted Shettima as saying: “ExxonMobil’s potential investment aligns with the vision of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s administration for a more investment-friendly Nigeria.
We are committed to fostering an environment that supports such transformative projects.”Shettima also discussed the administration’s broader efforts to improve the ease of doing business, highlighting the “Renewed Hope Agenda,” which aims to simplify bureaucratic processes, enhance transparency, and offer fiscal incentives to attract global investors.
“Our administration has taken bold steps to unify the exchange rate, remove fuel subsidies, and implement tax reforms. These measures, though challenging in the short term, are intended to create a stable and predictable business environment in the long term,” he added.
On the oil and gas sector, Shettima mentioned that the government is revising the fiscal framework for deep-water operations to attract investment while ensuring fair returns for the Nigerian people.