Finance Minister Wale Edun says a forensic audit of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited is currently underway as part of efforts to address lingering financial concerns and improve transparency in the oil sector.
Edun made the disclosure during the Nigerian Investor Forum held on the sidelines of the IMF and World Bank spring meetings in Washington DC, on Wednesday, April 23.
Speaking to global investors, including representatives from J.P. Morgan, Edun explained that the move was part of broader reforms to reposition NNPC and reset the Nigerian economy.
“There’s a forensic audit of NNPC underway so that we can really understand what has happened in the past. As for now, there’s a reconciliation exercise going on,” Edun said.
He noted that following the fuel subsidy removal announced on May 29, 2023, NNPC began shouldering part of the financial burden, which created some legitimate claims.
“Part of that burden shifted from the government’s budget to NNPC. So, they have a legitimate claim and they have some arrears that need to be given to them,” Edun explained.
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“But then it’s a two-sided thing. There’s a reconciliation on underway. And the most important thing is that NNPC needs to come to the table with more oil production, more dollar revenue, and indeed, more revenue to the federation. That’s the mandate they have been given and I think they will deliver.”
The announcement follows persistent calls for a full audit of NNPC’s operations under its former leadership.
In recent years, watchdog groups have raised alarms over opacity in NNPC’s oil-backed deals. In 2023, the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) reported that NNPC failed to remit $2 billion in taxes before becoming a commercial entity. The company denied the claim.
In December 2024, auditors began probing NNPC’s ₦2.7 trillion subsidy refund claim. A separate January report from the auditor-general also indicted the firm for financial misconduct.
President Bola Tinubu, in response, appointed Bayo Ojulari as NNPC’s new group chief executive officer on April 2, replacing Mele Kyari. Ahmadu Musa Kida also took over as non-executive chairman.
Ojulari, who announced a new eight-member senior management team shortly after his appointment, has pledged to attract $60 billion in investment by 2030.
He also aims to raise daily crude oil production to over two million barrels and sustain that through 2027, with a target of three million barrels by 2030.