On Thursday, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited clarified that the unpaid N1.3tn debt by the Federal Government is unrelated to dividend payments.
In June of this year, the national oil company stated that it anticipated a N1.3tn refund from the Federation Account as debt owed by the Federal Government. This disclosure coincided with the commencement of the inter-agency committee’s sitting, constituted by President Bola Tinubu, to resolve the ongoing debt dispute.
The government accused NNPCL of a N2.8tn debt, but NNPCL claimed a N4.1tn outstanding subsidy payment from the government.
“The Federation owes NNPC almost N4.1tn and NNPC owes about N2.8tn to the Federal Government. So, they should actually give us a cheque for the debt of N1.3tn they owe NNPC Limited,” a senior official of the company had reportedly stated recently in Abuja, as the inter-agency committee constituted by the President moved to resolve the matter.
But despite this debt by the Federal Government to the NNPCL, the company announced recently that it paid a dividend and Production Sharing Contract profit of about N123bn to the Federal Government in June.
It stated, “NNPC has remitted N123bn (N81bn as monthly interim dividend and N42bn as 40 per cent PSC profit oil) in addition to compliance on payment of royalties and taxes.
Garba-Deen Muhammad further explain
“This clearly shows that the company under the leadership of Mallam Mele Kyari is moving in a positive trajectory as enshrined in the PIA (Petroleum Industry Act),” the company’s Chief Financial Officer, Umar Ajiya, stated in a chat with journalists.
When asked about deducting the owed N1.3tn after paying N123bn dividend, the oil company replied negatively to our correspondent.
NNPCL’s Garba-Deen clarified dividend’s independence from the FG’s N1.3tn debt to the oil company.
“Dividend payment is on projected profit and has nothing to do with the outstanding N1.3tn owed to the NNPC Ltd,” he stated in a brief reply to our correspondent.