By Adedapo Adesanya

The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) has announced the recovery of N7.43 trillion (approximately $4.85 billion) from outstanding payments owed by oil and gas companies, following its industry-wide financial disclosures.

The recovery is part of the total $8.26 billion identified in NEITI’s 2021 oil and gas audit report.

This was disclosed by NEITI’s Executive Secretary, Mr Orji Orji, while speaking during a press briefing in Abuja over the weekend, noting that the recoveries demonstrate the agency’s commitment to transparency and accountability in Nigeria’s extractive sector.

The NEITI chief noted that while significant progress has been made in recovering funds, unresolved financial liabilities remain a major concern.

“So far, over $4.85 billion was recovered from the disclosures of $8.26 billion (made by NEITI in its 2021 oil and gas report. In the 2023 industry reports released in September 2024, NEITI disclosed liabilities of $6.175 billion and N66.378 billion, showing a significant decline from the liabilities of 2021 reports, yet worrisome because of the need for government to find resources to fund its 2025 budget,” Mr Orji stated.

He decried that despite NEITI’s efforts to ensure financial accountability in the oil and gas sector, several companies have continued to default on payments.

He called on relevant government bodies, including the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), to take stronger enforcement actions against defaulters and adopt more stringent measures to prevent future revenue leakages.

“Analyses of how these liabilities, when paid, could support the federal government’s domestic revenue mobilization reveals that the liabilities, when converted at N1,500 to one dollar, would amount to N9.33 trillion.

“The sum is more than the federal government’s total budget for health, education, agriculture and food security, which totaled N8.73 trillion. Further analyses show that the sum is also more than the total budget for national security at N6.11 trillion, health at N2.48 trillion and social welfare of N724 billion all put together. The liabilities can also knock off about 72 per cent of the federal government’s budget deficit of N13 trillion for 2025.”

He called on relevant agencies responsible for collecting these revenues to do what is needed and support our governments at all levels to provide the much-needed infrastructure for our citizens,” he stated.

Mr Orji further disclosed plans to broaden the initiative’s industry-wide reports to include dedicated sections on divestments, forward sales of oil and gas assets, and environmental remediation.

This move, he noted, is aimed at strengthening transparency and accountability in the extractive sector.

He stated that while the agency’s current Beneficial Ownership data is up-to-date as of 2023, more work is needed to deepen engagements and public disclosures on companies acquiring divested assets.

Mr Orji highlighted challenges such as institutional constraints, funding limitations, and resistance to change.

He called for collective efforts from the media, civil society, and stakeholders to ensure that Nigeria’s oil, gas, and mining revenues are managed prudently for the benefit of all citizens.

“Transparency is not just a policy; it is a responsibility. NEITI remains steadfast in ensuring that Nigeria’s extractive revenues are accounted for and utilized effectively,” he added.

By Adedapo Adesanya

Nigeria earned N7.68 trillion from the export of natural gas, liquefied petroleum gas and other gas products in 2024.

This showed an increase of 105.1 per cent from the N3.746 trillion earned from the sale of the commodities in 2023, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) in its Foreign Trade Statistics for the Fourth Quarter of 2024 noted.

It was revealed that gas export earnings accounted for 9.92 per cent of total exports recorded in the year under review versus the 10.42 per cent posted a year earlier.

Giving a breakdown of gas exports in 2024, the NBS reported that in the first quarter, the country recorded N1.437 trillion, N2.881 trillion was earned in the second quarter, while in the third and fourth quarter of 2024 stood at N35.845 billion and N3.329 trillion, respectively.

In comparison, the NBS stated that the country earned N668.119 billion, N711.1 billion, N1.109 trillion and N1.257 trillion from gas exports in the first, second, third and fourth quarter of 2023, respectively.

The NBS noted that the during the period under review, the country earned N1.943 trillion from natural gas exports, followed by other petroleum gases with N1.117 trillion, while Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) trailed with N269.074 billion.

The agency disclosed that Nigeria exported Liquefied Petroleum Gas valued at N112.71 billion and Natural gas worth N83.655 billion to the Netherlands in the fourth quarter of 2024; while natural gas valued at N135.21 billion was exported to France.

It added that Spain purchased N345.118 billion worth of natural gas from Nigeria and N131.289 billion worth of other petroleum gas, while India purchased other petroleum gas and natural gas valued at N337.085 billion and N209.159 billion, respectively.

In Africa, the NBS noted that Nigeria sold N10.81 billion worth of Liquefied Petroleum Gas to the Ivory Coast in the fourth quarter of 2024.

Based on the entire data, the stats office disclosed that total foreign trade stood at N138.033 trillion in 2024; rising by 106.6 per cent, compared with N66.825 trillion in 2023.

It added that total exports stood at N77.442 trillion in 2024, rising by 115.3 per cent compared with N35.962 trillion in 2023; while total imports stood at N60.59 trillion in 2024, rising by 96.3 per cent from N30.863 trillion recorded in 2023.

By Adedapo Adesanya

Last week, Guaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO) Plc declared a N7.03 final dividend, much to the joy of the investing community, especially as its fellow tier-1 banks like Zenith and UBA, declared N4 and N3, respectively.

The company declared a profit before tax of N1.27 trillion for the 2024 financial year, which is 107.8 per cent higher than the N609.31 billion reported in the 2023 fiscal year, as per its disclosure on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited last Friday.

The pre-tax profit was second only to Zenith Bank, which posted a PBT of N1.33 trillion for the same period.

It is increasingly clear that there is a form of competition between both institutions as evidenced in Zenith Bank having a total assets of N29.96 trillion compared to GTCO’s N14.79 trillion.

It would be expected that the bigger the assets, the bigger the dividends but it is not that simplistic.

The question as to why this is so is because GTCO has been able to keep its cost of funds low, kept its cost of risk minimal by not offering excessive loans while also not ballooning its operating costs.

This performance, according to the lender, reflects not just strong earnings but also the quality and sustainability of its earnings, underpinned by a well-diversified revenue base, robust risk management practice, and disciplined capital management.

The Group recorded growth across all financial and non-financial metrics, and continues to maintain a well-structured, healthy, and diversified balance sheet. The Group’s loan book (net) increased by just 12.3 per cent from N2.48 trillion in December 2023 to N2.79 trillion in December 2024, while deposit liabilities grew by 37.8 per cent from N7.55trillion to N10.40trillion during the same period.

GTCO’s shareholders’ funds closed at N2.7 trillion.

Meanwhile, Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) remained very robust and strong, closing at 39.3 per cent, likewise, asset quality was sustained as evidenced by IFRS 9 Stage 3 Loans which closed at 3.5 per cent at Bank Level and 5.2 per cent at Group in December 2024 (2023: Bank, 2.5 per cent; Group, 4.2 per cent) and cost of risk (COR) closed at 4.9 per cent from 4.5 per cent in December 2023.

Commenting on the results, the chief executive of GTCO Plc, Mr Segun Agbaje, said; “Our strong performance for 2024 underscores the resilience and depth of our business, driven by a well-diversified earnings base across our banking and non-banking subsidiaries, all of which are P&L positive.

“Our capacity to generate sustainable high-quality earnings, maintain strong asset quality, and drive cost efficiencies reflects the soundness of our long-term strategy and disciplined execution.

“We have also prudently provided for all our forbearance loans, well ahead of the June 2025 timeline, whilst fully accruing for the windfall tax, further strengthening our balance sheet and enhancing financial resilience.”

He further added; “The total dividend of N8.03k for the 2024 FYE is underpinned by the quality of our earnings and is in line with our long tradition of increasing dividend pay-out year-on year. Looking ahead, we remain committed to building a Financial Services Group that thrives on innovation, operational efficiency, and sustainable profitability.

“We will continue to deepen our relationships with customers, leverage technology to deliver cutting-edge financial solutions, and accelerate the growth of all our business verticals—Banking, Funds Management, Pension, and Payments—to unlock new opportunities and create more value for our shareholders,” he added.

Overall, the Group continues to post one of the best metrics in the Nigerian Financial Services industry in terms of key financial ratios i.e., Pre-Tax Return on Equity (ROAE) of 60.5 per cent, Pre-Tax Return on Assets (ROAA) of 10.3 per cent, Capital Adequacy Ratio (CAR) of 39.3 per cent and Cost to Income ratio of 24.1 per cent.