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| Commission Chief Executive, NUPRC, Engr. Gbenga Komolafe |
The Nigerian
Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has faulted a report titled,
‘N8.41tn oil theft drains economy, fuels investors’ doubts’ published on the
front page of The PUNCH on Wednesday September 24, 2025.
NUPRC said the report in
question was based on a misinterpretation of crude loss statistics between 2021
and July 2025 which had been released by the NUPRC in the spirit of
transparency and in line with the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021.
This was based on a statement released by the Commission, signed by Head, Media and Strategic Communications, Eniola Akinkuotu.
Recall that
the commission had revealed on September 11, 2025 that daily crude oil losses
had dropped to 9,600 barrels per
day, the lowest since 2009 which was reported widely and accurately.
The Commission noted it was
vindicated when the latest figures released by the National Bureau of
Statistics (NBS) showed that Nigeria’s economy grew by 4.23% largely on the
back of an increased oil output and two other sectors an-acknowledgement of the
steady progress made by the industry to combat the menace of crude oil theft.
Against the
foregoing, the report by The PUNCH is not only specious but lacks proper
context for the following reasons:
"Firstly, crude oil losses have been on
the downward trend due to collaborative efforts between the NUPRC, the Office
of the National Security Adviser, the military, Operators and other relevant
stakeholders. This collaboration through both kinetic and non-kinetic means,
dropped oil theft from a staggering 102,900 in 2021 – when the Commission was
established – to the current 9,600bopd representing over 90% reduction in losses.
"Also, in the misleading report, an
exchange rate of N1,500/$1 is used from 2021 to 2025 to increase the figures
and sensationalize actual losses when in actual fact, Nigeria’s exchange rate
was less than N430 on the official market and barely N600/$1 on average between
2021 (when most of the crude theft occurred) and in mid-2023. The N8.41
trillion is therefore inaccurate. Attempting to situate it within the current
2025 federal budget is flawed.
"Furthermore, the methodology adopted by
the Newspaper is significantly flawed because it lacks in-depth understanding
of operations, crude oil price trends and exchange rate mechanisms.
"Nigeria has continued to meet its OPEC quota due to the Commission’s
initiatives and working collaboratively with industry stakeholders to sustain
and grow productions. Such initiatives include: the project 1 million barrels,
implementation of the metering audit, restoration of shut-in strings and
increased rig counts, facility uptime, creation of alternative crude evacuation
mechanism etc.
"Furthermore, Nigeria now has the
technical capacity to produce above two million barrels daily. The Commission
is galvanizing Industry stakeholders – Operators, service providers (local and
international), rig owners, off-takers, and financiers - in order to fully unlock the potential,
riding on the improved operating environment and social inclusion in operating
areas.
It said the story also failed the integrity test
as no attempt was made by the reporter to get a clarification from the
commission in the spirit of fairness and balanced reporting.
