… Bolstering Nigeria’s Revenue Base
The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has remitted a total of ₦6.215 trillion to the Federation Account between January and September 2025, further strengthening its position as one of the federal government’s top revenue contributors.
According to a report shared by Arise News on its verified X (formerly Twitter) page, the figure was presented at the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) meeting held in Abuja on October 16, 2025. The amount represents cumulative transfers made to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) during the nine month period.
In September alone, NUPRC remitted ₦741.99 billion, accounting for 61.59% of its monthly revenue target of ₦1.2 trillion. The commission, however, noted that the figure fell short by about ₦462.8 billion (38.41%), largely due to crude oil price fluctuations and shortfalls in national production.
Despite the shortfall, the September performance was only marginally lower by ₦3.2 billion (0.43%) than the ₦745.2 billion recorded in August. Last year, NUPRC reported record earnings of ₦12.25 trillion, a massive 282% increase from ₦4.34 trillion in 2023. In 2022, the regulator generated ₦3.7 trillion. The ₦6.2 trillion so far remitted in 2025 represents roughly 11.4% of Nigeria’s ₦55 trillion national budget, a key contribution that helps fund infrastructure projects, social programs, and other government initiatives.
In its latest report to FAAC, NUPRC revealed that its total performance between January and September when including receivables and pending royalty payments stood at ₦7.55 trillion. Of this, about ₦759 billion came from NNPC Ltd’s joint venture (JV) and production sharing contract (PSC) royalty receivables, while ₦730 billion originated from Project Gazelle receipts.
The commission also noted that total JV royalty receivables from October 2022 to August 2025 have now reached ₦6.32 trillion, reflecting ongoing efforts to recover outstanding obligations from oil companies under government oversight. In its submission to FAAC, NUPRC attributed the September dip to global oil market volatility and production interruptions caused by field maintenance and disruptions in some producing regions. On recoveries, the agency disclosed that it received $3.39 million in September from previously outstanding obligations under Production Sharing Contracts (PSCs), Direct Sale Direct Purchase (DSDP) deals, and Marine Crude Allocation (MCA) liftings. About $1.476 billion remains uncollected. NUPRC added that reconciliation is still ongoing between the NNPC and the Federation, following a series of meetings in July to resolve discrepancies in payments.
Meanwhile, FAAC confirmed that the NNPC had finally submitted a report on under remittances valued at over $42.3 billion, after requesting two months to review findings by Periscope Consulting, which was hired by the Governors Forum to investigate remittances between 2011 and 2017. The committee is currently vetting NNPC’s submission.
In a related development, FAAC said the review of NNPC’s 30% Frontier Exploration Fund is still ongoing. The fund mandated by Section 9(4) of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021) allocates 30% of NNPC’s profits from oil and gas contracts to explore new frontiers across Nigeria. While NNPC insists the fund is vital for expanding Nigeria’s energy reserves, critics argue that channeling such a large share of profits into exploration diverts resources from social investments.
SOURCE: Demperor96
