The former Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Mele Kyari, is under increasing scrutiny as the federal government, led by President Bola Tinubu, initiates a comprehensive forensic audit of the state-owned oil giant.
Kyari, who had headed the national oil company since 2019, was removed by President Tinubu on 2 April as part of a wider restructuring effort aimed at revitalising Nigeria’s oil and gas sector and boosting crude production.
Nigeria’s Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Wale Edun, confirmed that a forensic audit of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) is currently in progress.
Edun made the disclosure at the Nigeria Investment Forum in Washington D.C., held on the sidelines of the ongoing Spring Meetings of the World Bank and International Monetary Fund (IMF).
The forum was attended by key foreign investors and representatives from global financial institutions, including JP Morgan, Citibank, Standard Chartered Bank, Chapel Hill Denham, and Kirkoswald Capital.
Responding to a query on Nigeria’s oil sector, Edun stated, “There is an NNPC audit underway so that we can truly understand what transpired in the past. At present, reconciliation exercises are ongoing. The truth is, while the removal of the fuel subsidy was announced on 29 May 2023, it took some time to fully implement. During that period, part of the financial burden shifted from the federal budget to the NNPCL.”
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He added, “Reconciliation is ongoing, but the key priority now is for NNPCL to increase oil production, generate more revenue—particularly in dollars—and contribute more significantly to the Federation’s account. That is the mandate they have been given, and I believe they will deliver.”
The Finance Minister also highlighted the current administration’s suite of targeted economic reforms. These include the removal of fuel subsidies, liberalisation of the foreign exchange market, a reset of monetary policy, and the elimination of deficit financing through Ways and Means advances.
