The Executive Secretary of the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), Dr. Orji Ogbonnaya Orji, has revealed that about ₦1.5 trillion owed to the Federation by some companies and government agencies could significantly support key sectors such as energy infrastructure, education, and healthcare if recovered.
Dr. Orji disclosed this on Thursday during the 2025 Conference of the Association of Energy Correspondents of Nigeria (NAEC) held in Lagos. The conference, themed “Nigeria’s Energy Future: Exploring Opportunities and Addressing Risks for Sustainable Growth,” brought together industry stakeholders to examine pathways for energy development and reform.
According to him, NEITI’s 2021–2022 Oil and Gas Industry Reports showed that Nigeria earned $23.04 billion in 2021 and $23.05 billion in 2022 from the oil and gas sector. However, the reports also identified outstanding remittances of ₦1.5 trillion owed to the Federation.
“These are funds that could significantly support energy infrastructure, education, and healthcare if recovered,” Dr. Orji said.
He lamented the devastating impact of poor accountability, noting that Nigeria lost 13.5 million barrels of crude oil valued at $3.3 billion to theft and sabotage in 2022 alone.
“That is revenue that could have financed a full year of the federal health budget or provided energy access to millions of households,” he added.
The NEITI boss described the losses as more than economic, saying they represent “broken trust, institutional weaknesses, and missed opportunities for national progress.”
“Transparency and accountability are not optional, they are existential,” he emphasized.
Speaking earlier, the Chairman of NAEC, Mr. Ugo Amadi, said the theme of the conference underscored the urgency for Nigeria to tackle the persistent challenges preventing it from maximizing its abundant natural and human resources.
He stated that Nigeria’s 37 billion barrels of oil reserves and over 200 trillion cubic feet of natural gas reserves remain largely underutilized due to production inefficiencies and policy gaps.
“Despite our total installed power generation capacity of about 14,000 megawatts, only around 4,000MW reaches end-users in a country of over 200 million people. Industrialization cannot happen under these realities,” Amadi stressed.
Former Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Dr. Uchechukwu Ogah, who also spoke at the event, highlighted the series of energy reforms undertaken by successive administrations, including the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) of 2021 and the Electricity Act of 2023.
He noted that while these reforms are designed to enhance governance and efficiency in the oil and power sectors, their impact remains limited.
Citing the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), Ogah said despite the reforms, power generation still lags, with installed capacity of 13,000MW and actual output below 50%.
He attributed the shortfall to “gas supply constraints, transmission bottlenecks, and commercial inefficiencies” across the electricity value chain.
Dr. Ogah identified three major challenges confronting Nigeria’s energy sector, ensuring reforms deliver tangible results, maximizing the value of hydrocarbon resources before global decline, and achieving universal energy access for all Nigerians.
“Nigeria’s energy future is not a choice between opportunity and risk; it is a challenge to navigate both dynamics together,” he stated. “Success will demand a pragmatic, multipronged strategy that leverages our strengths while confronting our vulnerabilities head-on.”