The Nigerian Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (NEITI) has uncovered N1.5 trillion in unremitted funds owed to the federation by various private companies and government agencies.
This revelation was made by the Executive Secretary of NEITI, Mr. Orji Ogbonnaya Orji, during the National Association of Energy Correspondents (NAEC) Energy Conference 2025 held in Lagos on Thursday. The event had as its theme “Nigeria’s Energy Future: Exploring Opportunities and Addressing Risks for Sustainable Growth.”
According to Orji, the unremitted revenues, if recovered, could significantly boost funding for energy infrastructure, education, and healthcare, which remain critical sectors in Nigeria’s economic development.
He also disclosed that NEITI had successfully unmasked the true beneficial owners of over 4,800 extractive assets, a move aimed at promoting transparency, accountability, and anti-corruption efforts within the country’s extractive industries.
“The agency’s work has helped the government in combating corruption and illicit financial flows that have drained public resources for years,” he stated.
Highlighting the scale of losses, Orji revealed that in 2022 alone, Nigeria lost 13.5 million barrels of crude oil valued at $3.3 billion to theft and sabotage. He lamented that the lost revenue could have funded the entire federal health budget for a year or provided energy access to millions of Nigerian households.
He called for stronger enforcement mechanisms, improved fiscal discipline, and collaborative efforts between the government and industry operators to recover the lost funds and plug revenue leakages.
