morganable politics/Governance
For the NMDPRA, the Auditor-General said the N431.01bn debt had remained substantially unresolved years after it was incurred
KaNo—
The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has come under fresh scrutiny following the discovery of more than N432bn in unpaid debts, statutory levies and other outstanding financial obligations involving petroleum marketers.
The bulk of the liabilities, amounting to N431.01bn, represents legacy National Transport Average (NTA), bridging allowance and other obligations owed to the petroleum sector regulator by marketers, according to the Auditor-General for the Federation’s 2024 Annual Report on Non-Compliance and Internal Control Weaknesses in Ministries, Departments and Agencies.
The report, obtained from the Office of the Auditor-General for the Federation (OAGF), also revealed that government Ministries, Departments and Agencies were linked to at least N1.39tn in recurring financial irregularities, control failures and breaches of public finance regulations in 2024.
The figure represents the cumulative value of 30 monetary cross-cutting issues identified by the Auditor-General, highlighting persistent weaknesses in the management and recovery of public funds across government institutions.
The largest component of the audit queries was N882.75bn in unrecovered debts involving six MDAs, representing about 63 per cent of the total amount implicated in the cross-cutting issues.
TCN Accounts For Largest
The Transmission Company of Nigeria accounted for the largest share, with N446.70bn in unrecovered debts, while the Nigerian College of Aviation Technology, Zaria, recorded the lowest amount among the affected agencies at N935.56m.
For the NMDPRA, the Auditor-General said the N431.01bn debt had remained substantially unresolved years after it was incurred.
The report noted that as of August 2025, auditors had found no evidence that the outstanding amount had been recovered or that the situation had materially changed.
The N431.01bn liability dwarfed other financial irregularities identified at the authority, including N1.06bn in unpaid statutory levies owed by 14 oil marketers and N217.84m in unremitted Industrial Training Fund contributions.
According to the Auditor-General, the debt comprised accumulated indebtedness arising from National Transport Average obligations, bridging allowances and other legacy liabilities.
Data Shows Petroleum Marketers Account 315.18bn
A breakdown of the amount showed that the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria accounted for N315.18bn.
This comprised N132.56bn in bridging allowance debts and N182.62bn in National Transport Average obligations.
The Major Energy Marketers Association of Nigeria accounted for another N106.30bn, while N9.53bn represented an unissued legacy debt in promissory notes by the Federal Ministry of Finance.
The Auditor-General cited Section 47(1) of the Petroleum Industry Act 2021, which provides for the establishment of the Authority Fund into which money accruing to the regulator is to be paid.
The report stated that auditors observed that N431,012,935,018.88 represented National Transport Average, legacy debt and bridging allowance indebtedness to the NMDPRA as of May 2023.
It further noted that by the time of the audit in August 2025, there was no evidence that the amount had changed, adding that the authority had provided no sufficient justification for its failure to recover the indebtedness from third parties.
The auditors attributed the anomaly to weaknesses in the internal control system of the NMDPRA and warned that the failure to recover the funds exposed government revenue to possible loss and diversion.
NMDPRA Acknowledges Debt
The NMDPRA, however, acknowledged the outstanding amount but described the N431.01bn as legacy receivables due from marketers.
The authority said it had commenced efforts to reconcile the outstanding balances with the affected companies.
“Management notes that the sum of N431,012,935,018.88 represents a legacy receivable due from marketers. Efforts have been made to engage the affected marketers for reconciliation and sign-off of the outstanding balances,” the authority said.
The Auditor-General rejected the explanation as unsatisfactory and maintained the audit finding.
“The management’s response to the issue has been noted; however, it is deemed unsatisfactory. Consequently, the findings remain valid until the recommendations are implemented,” the report stated.
The auditors recommended that the Chief Executive of the NMDPRA should explain the non-recovery of the N431.01bn before the Public Accounts Committees of the National Assembly.
They also directed the authority to recover the outstanding funds and remit them to the Treasury.
Report Warns Against Non-Compliance
The report warned that sanctions could be imposed for failure to collect and account for government revenue, while non-compliance could also amount to gross misconduct.
In a separate finding, the Auditor-General disclosed that 14 oil marketers owed N1.06bn in unpaid statutory levies on petroleum products.
Under the Petroleum Industry Act, the NMDPRA is entitled to collect a 0.5 per cent levy on the wholesale price of petroleum products sold in Nigeria to wholesale customers as part of its funding sources.
The audit found that N1.06bn remained outstanding as of January 24, 2025.
“The sum of N1,059,622,848.29 was standing as the amount of indebtedness for the year 2024, by fourteen oil marketers,” the report stated.
The NMDPRA said it had already recovered N3.19bn out of a total N4.25bn outstanding in Authority Levy payments covering January to December 2024.
According to the regulator, the remaining N1.06bn was being pursued through demand notices issued to defaulting marketers.
“Following reconciliation exercises, the Authority recovered N3.19bn of the N4.25bn outstanding 0.5 per cent Authority Levy for January-December 2024. The remaining balance of N1.06bn is being pursued through Demand Notices issued to the defaulting marketers,” the authority said.
The Auditor-General sustained the finding to the extent of the N1.06bn still outstanding and directed the NMDPRA to recover and remit the money to the Treasury.
The audit also found that the authority failed to remit N217.84m to the Industrial Training Fund in 2024.
According to the report, the NMDPRA’s payroll for the year stood at N21.78bn, making the authority liable to remit one per cent of its total payroll to the ITF under the Industrial Training Fund Act.
The unremitted contribution amounted to N217,841,922.18.
The latest findings have placed renewed attention on the NMDPRA’s financial controls and its ability to recover government revenue from operators within the petroleum sector.
