Oil and gas companies operating in Nigeria owe the government N2.659 trillion ($6.48 billion), this is according to the Executive Secretary of the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), Orji Ogbonnaya Orji.
Orji shared that NEITI, with support from its Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed with anti-corruption agencies in the country, would go after the 77 oil and gas companies indebted to the government.
This was disclosed at the formal introduction of the new members of the board of the organisation to journalists in Abuja on Monday.
He stated that the organisation would work jointly with anti-graft agencies such as the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU), the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) for the facilitation of its debt recovery exercise.
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He said, “The NEITI reports based on findings in its 2019 audit reports of the oil and gas sector show that oil and gas companies in Nigeria owe government about $6.48 billion which equals about N2.659 trillion at today’s exchange rate of N410.35.
“Data available to NEITI indicates that 77 companies (including international and Nigerian owned oil and gas companies) owe these debts which arise from failure to remit petroleum profit tax, company income tax, education tax, value-added tax, withholding tax, royalty and concession on rentals.
“This debt is at a time that government is borrowing money to fund the provision and upgrade of infrastructure for Nigerians, uplift their standards of living, provide steady power supply and access to good roads, quality healthcare and security.
“A breakdown of the figures shows that a total of $143.99 million is owed as petroleum profit taxes, $1.089 billion as company income taxes and $201.69 million as education tax.
“Others include $18.46Million and £972,000 as Value Added Tax, $23.91 million and £997,000 as Withholding Tax, $4.357 billion as royalty oil, $292.44 million as royalty gas, while $270.187 million and $41.86 million were unremitted gas flare penalties and concession rentals respectively.”
