MORGANABLE BUSINESS /MARKETS
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) has reduced the amount owed to it by customers by N11.66tn, according to its 2025 audited financial statements.
Akure —
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) has reduced the amount owed to it by customers by N11.66tn, according to its 2025 audited financial statements. NNPC said stronger debt recovery helped drive the reduction in its latest audited financial results.
The company’s group trade and other receivables fell by 37.2 per cent to N19.71tn at the end of 2025. The balance stood at N31.37tn in 2024. Therefore, NNPC recorded a reduction of N11.66tn within one year as it stepped up efforts to recover outstanding payments.
Trade receivables are amounts that customers owe a company for goods or services already supplied. In NNPC’s case, the amounts can include money owed for crude oil, natural gas and other petroleum products. The reduction, therefore, shows that the company lowered the value of unpaid customer balances on its books.
However, the N11.66tn reduction does not mean NNPC collected N11.66tn in cash. Changes in receivables can also come from settlements, write-offs, impairments and reclassifications. Therefore, the figure mainly shows the change in the amount recorded as outstanding at the end of the financial year.
At the same time, NNPC also reduced its group trade and other payables. These obligations fell by 31.5 per cent to N22.16tn in 2025. The balance was N32.34tn in the previous year. This means the company reduced its outstanding payment obligations by N10.18tn during the period.
The latest figures come as NNPC continues to change the way it manages its business. Under the Petroleum Industry Act, NNPC became a commercially focused company in 2022. Since then, management has placed more attention on financial discipline, stronger operations and the recovery of money owed to the company.
NNPC Group Chief Executive Officer Bayo Ojulari said the company had increased its efforts to recover debts from customers. He explained that some customers had received crude oil and gas but had not paid on time. As a result, the company began following up more closely on outstanding balances.
The debt recovery process now receives regular attention from management. NNPC reviews recovery progress each month and engages the heads of companies and other entities that owe it money. This allows the company to identify problems and push for payment.
The move is important because unpaid customer bills can affect a company’s cash flow. When customers delay payment, a supplier may have less money available for daily operations and new investments. Therefore, recovering old debts can give NNPC more financial room to support its business.
Meanwhile, the stronger debt recovery drive formed part of a wider improvement in NNPC’s financial results. The company reported profit after tax of N7.2tn in 2025. That represented a 33 per cent increase from N5.4tn recorded in 2024, even though revenue fell during the year.
NNPC’s revenue dropped by 24 per cent to N34.5tn from N45.1tn. The company linked the decline mainly to lower international crude oil prices and reduced white-product volumes. These changes followed the deregulation of the domestic petroleum market and the end of the petrol subsidy.
Despite the revenue decline, NNPC improved its profit. Tighter cost control and better operations supported the result. In addition, general and administrative expenses fell by 25 per cent. This helped the company keep more of its revenue as profit while dealing with pressure in the oil market.
NNPC also reported stronger cash flow in 2025. Operating cash flow increased by 16 per cent to N12.8tn. Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation also rose by 22 per cent to N18tn. This points to improvement across several areas of its financial performance.
The national oil company also increased payments to the Federal Government. Taxes, royalties and other remittances rose by 39 per cent to N22.3tn in 2025. Therefore, NNPC’s stronger profit and improved financial management also translated into higher payments to the government.
At the company level, the movement in receivables was even larger. Trade and other receivables fell by 56.1 per cent to N22.02tn from N50.14tn. That represents a reduction of N28.13tn. However, these figures cover a different reporting level from the group accounts and should not be added together.
Beyond debt recovery, NNPC reported stronger oil and gas production. Crude oil and condensate production reached 1.77 million barrels per day at its peak in 2025. The company described this as its highest production level in five years. Nigerian gas supply also reached a three-year high of 7.2 billion standard cubic feet per day.
NNPC wants to build on that progress. The company plans to raise crude oil production to two million barrels per day by 2027. It also targets three million barrels per day by 2030. For gas, NNPC wants to increase production to 12 billion standard cubic feet per day by 2030.
To support these targets, the company plans to mobilise $60bn in investments across the upstream, midstream and downstream sectors by 2030. The targets will require strong financial management and continued investment.
The latest debt figures also matter because NNPC is considering a possible stock market listing. Ojulari has said the company must show strong commercial discipline before inviting investors to buy shares. Therefore, customer debt recovery will remain important.
Overall, NNPC’s N11.66tn reduction in group receivables marks a significant change in its financial position. Although the reduction does not represent cash collections alone, it shows that the company lowered the amount recorded as owed by customers. Going forward, continued debt recovery will be important.
As NNPC pursues higher production and larger investments, strong financial controls will remain necessary. The company must also keep improving its operations and managing costs. For Nigeria’s oil and gas industry, these efforts could support a stronger and more commercially focused national oil company in the years ahead.
