President Bola Tinubu’s executive order aimed at improving Nigeria’s petroleum revenue management has seen about ₦211.74 billion accumulate in accounts linked to frontier exploration and gas-flaring penalties, raising questions about how the directive is being implemented.
The figures, contained in records from the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, cover transactions recorded between February and September 2026. The development follows the introduction of Executive Order 9 of 2026, which seeks to ensure that more oil and gas revenue is paid directly into the Federation Account for distribution among the Federal Government, states and local governments.
The records show that the Frontier Exploration Fund account recorded cumulative receipts of ₦106.75 billion, while the gas-flaring penalty account had ₦104.98 billion transferred into an escrow account.
Together, the two accounts recorded ₦211.74 billion, with no payments listed against the frontier exploration balance or the gas-flaring penalty ledger during the period under review.
Tinubu signed the executive order on February 13, 2026, to address what his administration described as structural problems and excessive deductions affecting petroleum revenue remittances.
Under the directive, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited was instructed to stop collecting the 30 per cent management fee and the 30 per cent Frontier Exploration Fund deductions from profit oil and profit gas under specified petroleum contracts.
The order also suspended the payment of gas-flaring penalties into the Midstream and Downstream Gas Infrastructure Fund, directing that the proceeds be remitted to the Federation Account instead.
The administration said the changes were intended to strengthen transparency, eliminate overlapping revenue-retention arrangements and ensure that funds due to the three tiers of government were distributed in accordance with constitutional provisions.
However, the latest records indicate that receipts continued to enter the frontier exploration account after the order took effect.
In September alone, the account recorded ₦14.16 billion, compared with ₦6.90 billion in August, representing an increase of approximately 105 per cent.
The development has raised questions about whether the recorded inflows represent fresh deductions, delayed accounting entries, recoveries or transactions arising from transitional arrangements.
The management-fee account also showed that ₦92.59 billion accumulated between February and August before the entire amount was recorded as paid to the three tiers of government on October 12.
A subsequent entry showed another ₦14.16 billion in management fees for September, raising further questions about how the accounts are being reconciled under the new arrangement.
The documents did not provide a clear explanation for the continued entries or why some figures in separate ledgers appeared identical.
The executive order was introduced to ensure that petroleum revenues due to the Federation are remitted without certain deductions being made beforehand. The Federal Government has maintained that the reform is intended to protect public revenue and improve accountability in the oil and gas sector.
The latest figures have therefore brought renewed attention to the implementation of the policy, particularly the need for clarification on how the recorded balances are being treated and when the funds will become available for distribution.
Category: Business / Economy
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