Senate Reveals NNPC Withdrew $3.12bn From NLNG Dividend Account

The Senate, on Thursday, disclosed that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) withdrew the sum of $3.12 billion from the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) dividends account domiciled in the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in the last three years.

The amount, according to the Senate Committee on Gas Resources, was made in twenty-two withdrawals.

This was disclosed when officials of the NNPC and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) appeared before the Committee at an investigative hearing.

The Chairman of the Committee, Senator Bassey Albert Akpan, read out the figures from the documents submitted to the Committee by the two federal establishments.

The Committee is currently investigating the $1.05 billion that the NNPC admitted to have withdrawn from the NLNG dividend account to “augment under-recoveries” in the importation of petrol.

NLNG is a gas firm jointly owned by the Federal Government and three multinational oil companies, namely: Shell, Total and Eni.

The NNPC, which represents the government in the gas company, holds 49 percent of the shares.

Shell owns 25.6 percent, Total owns 15 percent, and Eni owns 10.4 percent.

The senators frowned that the NNPC acted beyond its powers by unilaterally drawing from the NLNG dividends, without recourse to the National Assembly for approval or other tier of government.

According to them, dividends from the NLNG are supposed to be paid into the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the Federation, to be shared among the federal, state and local governments.

However, the Group Managing Director (GMD) of the NNPC, Mr. Maikanti Baru, told the Committee recently that the Corporation acted in line with the Act that set it up.

Baru pointed out that Section 7 (4)(b) of NNPC Act empowers the Corporation to fund its operations from its internally generated revenue (IGR).

He said the action was necessitated by the need to sustain the supply of petrol across the country following the withdrawal of independent oil marketers from importation after the stoppage of fuel subsidy in 2016.

During the meeting, Akpan directed the NNPC, represented by its Chief Financial Officer, Mr. Isiaka Abdulrazak, to furnish the Committee with all the originating mandates for the 22 withdrawals.

Akpan gave the directive, after Abdulrazak said, upon enquiry from the lawmakers, that the NNPC was the operator of the account.

Akpan also asked the CBN’s Acting Director of Banking Services, Mr. Christopher Olomukoro, whether authorisation for withdrawal from the account came from any other entity or government official other than the NNPC.

Olumokoro answered in the affirmative.

“(The CBN) also accepts withdrawal mandates from the Minister of Finance,” Olumokoro added.

“So, who runs the account? Is it a joint account between the NNPC and the Federal Ministry of Finance?” Akpan asked.

“No, but the issue here is that the Honourable Minister of Finance also has the power to submit mandates in respect of that account,” he responded.

At this point, Akpan noted that out of the 22 withdrawals, the CBN submitted mandates for only seven, which he said came from the NNPC, wondering why the mandates from the Minister of Finance were not included.

This provoked reactions from members of the Committee, who requested for all the 22 withdrawal mandates in custody of the CBN from both the Minister and NNPC.

They also directed the NNPC to provide the originating mandates and letters of approvals for its withdrawals from the account.

The Committee gave the agencies till November 30 to make the documents available, and adjourned sitting till December 4.