Reps launch probe into $850bn unrepatriated crude oil export proceeds
The House of Representatives has launched an investigation into the alleged non-repatriation of Nigeria’s crude oil export proceeds, estimated at more than $850 billion between 1996 and 2014, a shortfall lawmakers described as one of the country’s largest revenue leakages in the nation’s economic history.
Seyi Sowunmi, chairman of the House Ad-Hoc Committee on Pre-Shipment Inspection of Exports and Non-Repatriation of Crude Oil Proceeds, announced the inquiry on Wednesday during the Committee’s inaugural press briefing at the National Assembly, Abuja.
Sowunmi said preliminary findings indicate that operators in the oil and gas sector may have failed to repatriate between 40 and 45 percent of Nigeria’s crude oil export proceeds, in breach of the Pre-shipment Inspection of Exports Act, which mandates full repatriation of export earnings within 90 days for oil exports and 180 days for non-oil exports.
“This situation represents a massive haemorrhage of national resources that should have strengthened our foreign reserves and supported economic growth. Our task is to ensure that every dollar legitimately earned from Nigeria’s exports is accounted for and returned to the Federation Account”, Sowunmi said.
He also expressed concern over “worrisome disparities” in export earnings data reported by key government institutions — including the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Department of Petroleum Resources (now Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, NUPRC), Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), and the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
He noted that figures from these agencies frequently contradict one another and often differ sharply from international data, including that published by the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC).
Beyond oil, Sowunmi disclosed that the committee would also scrutinise non-oil export sectors such as solid minerals, agricultural commodities, and manufactured goods, which he said have been “riddled with high levels of non-compliant export earnings reports.”
He explained that the Pre-shipment Inspection of Exports Act (CAP P26, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004) established the Nigerian Export Supervision Scheme (NESS) to prevent capital flight, ensure accurate export valuation, and protect Nigeria’s foreign exchange inflows.
Before the Act’s enactment in 1996, he recalled, the country was plagued by “endemic leakages through under-valuation, delayed invoicing, price manipulation, illegal swaps, and deliberate overloading.”
According to him, the Committee’s mandate includes verifying the actual volume and value of unrepatriated export proceeds from the oil, gas, and non-oil sectors since 1996; identifying the reasons behind conflicting data across agencies; and commissioning a forensic reconciliation of export proceeds.
The panel will also examine how funds generated under the NESS have been managed and utilised over the years.
“This Committee will be guided strictly by evidence, not speculation. Our work will be document-based, data-driven, transparent, and verifiable. Our aim is simple: Nigeria must receive, in full and promptly, every dollar legally due from its exports”, Sowunmi said.
He stressed that the investigation aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda and the House’s resolve, under Tajudeen Abbas, the House Speaker to plug revenue leakages and recover funds owed to the Federation Account.
To support the inquiry, Sowunmi said the Committee will leverage existing whistleblowing mechanisms to encourage insiders to share credible information. “The Committee will actively utilise whistleblowing channels, guaranteeing confidentiality and possible rewards for credible information from industry staff, inspection agents, bankers, and concerned citizens,” he stated.
He urged full cooperation from stakeholders across the export value chain, including oil companies, regulators, financial institutions, and exporters, describing the probe as a “whole-of-system exercise.”
“Operators must supply shipment-to-receipt trails; regulators must reconcile production, certification, and foreign exchange returns; and financial institutions must provide account-level evidence of repatriation within the required timeframe. Where breaches are discovered, appropriate civil and criminal sanctions shall apply,” he warned.
Sowunmi maintained that the exercise is entirely non-partisan and focused solely on protecting Nigeria’s economic integrity. “Our measure of success is not publicity, but verifiable financial recovery to the Federation Account. This inquiry transcends politics; it is about strengthening the economy and ensuring justice for Nigeria”, he said.
