Economy
Nigeria Loses N122.9bn to Gas Flaring in Q1 2023
By Adedapo Adesanya
The National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) has disclosed that Nigeria lost an equivalent of $266.7 million, about N122.949 billion, to gas flaring in three months.
This is as oil and gas companies operating in the country flared 76.2 billion standard cubic feet (SCF) of gas between January and March 2023, according to data from the watchdog.
NOSDRA stated that the value of gas flared in the three-month period of 2023 was 3.53 per cent higher than the $257.6 million, about N118.754 billion lost to gas flaring in the same period in 2022.
In addition, NOSDRA stated that the companies were expected to pay penalties of $152.4 million, an equivalent of N70.256 billion, compared with $147.2 million, about N67.859 billion penalties they were expected to pay as penalties between January and March 2022.
In general, the oil spill detection and remediation agency reported that the 76.2 billion SCF of gas flared in the first three months of 2023 led to carbon dioxide emissions of 4.0 million tonnes and had a power generation potential of 7,600 gigawatts hour (GWh) of electricity.
In the same period in 2022, the 73.6 billion SCF of gas flared, led to carbon dioxide emissions of 3.9 million tonnes and had a power generation potential of 7,400 GWh of electricity.
Giving a breakdown of gas flared across different sectors of the petroleum industry in the first three months of 2023, NOSDRA stated that companies operating offshore flared 39.1 billion SCF of gas, valued at $136.9 million (N63.119 billion), were liable for penalties of $78.2 million (N36.05 billion); saw 2.1 million tonnes of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and had power generation potential of 3,900 GWh of electricity.
Specifically, NOSDRA disclosed that in January, February and March 2023, 10.805 billion SCF, 15.009 billion SCF and 13.305 billion SCF of gas were flared, respectively.
On the other hand, companies operating in Nigeria’s onshore oil space flared 37.1 billion SCF, valued at $129.8 million, an equivalent of N59.838 billion, were liable for penalties of 74.2 million (N34.206 billion), capable of generating 3,700 GWh of electricity and led to CO2 emissions of 2.0 million tonnes.
Specifically, 12.391 billion SCF, 12.117 billion SCF and 12.569 billion SCF of gas were flared onshore in January, February and March 2023, respectively.
In its analysis of gas flared in 2022, NOSDRA said: “12 million tonnes of CO2 were emitted into the atmosphere contributing to global warming, while useful natural gas valued at $0.79 billion was burned by the Nigerian oil and gas industry; equivalent to fines at the value of $450 million, many of which are not collected.
“In addition, 22,500 GigaWatt hours of potential power generation went to waste, equivalent to the annual electricity use of 511 million Nigerian citizens.”
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) is seeking a reduction in import duty exemptions, which rose to N34 trillion, limiting its ability to increase its revenue generation threshold.
The Comptroller-General of the Customs Service, Mr Adewale Adeniyi, disclosed that the value of import duty exemption certificate approvals increased to that level in 2025, describing the policy as one of the major factors restricting its revenue generation.
At an investigative session of the Senate Committee on Finance with revenue-generating agencies in Abuja on Monday, Mr Adeniyi explained that government fiscal policies have continued to impact the revenue-generating capacity of the Customs Service, both positively and negatively.
“The NCS would have generated significantly higher revenue over the years if not for government-approved import duty waivers and other external factors affecting collections,” he said.
He added that the Import Duty Exemption Certificate scheme, introduced in March 2020, accounted for about N34 trillion in approvals in 2025, with nearly 60 per cent covering duty-free importation of military hardware due to Nigeria’s prevailing security challenges.
Other government-backed duty waivers, he noted, covered the importation of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG), electric and hybrid vehicles, healthcare equipment and medical supplies, industrial machinery and manufacturing inputs, as well as food import intervention programmes.
While acknowledging the impact of the waivers on Customs revenue, Mr Adeniyi argued that fiscal policy should not be assessed solely on the basis of revenue generation but also on its broader economic and social objectives.
He, however, urged the federal government to establish stronger monitoring mechanisms to ensure beneficiaries of duty waivers deliver the intended economic outcomes, including lower consumer prices, increased local production and improved healthcare access.
The committee also expressed displeasure over the absence of several heads of government agencies invited to the hearing, including the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), Industrial Training Fund (ITF), and the Federal Medical Centre (FMC), Jabi.
The Chairman of the Senate Committee on Finance, Mr Sani Musa, warned that the affected chief executives must appear at the committee’s next sitting or face severe sanctions under the Senate’s rules.
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By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange rose by 0.40 per cent on Monday, July 13, buoyed by buying interest in 11 Plc, Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc and UBN Property Plc, which offset the profit-taking in Food Concepts Plc, the parent company of Chicken Republic.
11 Plc gained N20.69 to end at N227.64 per share compared with last Friday’s price of N206.95 per share, CSCS Plc grew by N1.83 to N91.48 per unit from N89.65 per unit, and UBN Property Plc added 1 Kobo to sell at N1.81 per share versus N1.80 per share.
On the flip side, Food Concepts Plc depreciated by 24 Kobo to close at N2.45 per unit, in contrast to the preceding session’s N2.69 per unit.
As a result, the market capitalisation increased by N9.2 billion to N2.587 trillion from N2.578 trillion, and the NASD Security Index (NSI) improved by 15.33 points to 4,311.67 points from 4,296.34 points.
Yesterday, the volume of securities traded by investors surged by 615.9 per cent to 9.1 million units from the previous 1.3 million units, and the value of securities rose by 997.1 per cent to N320.4 million from the preceding session’s N29.2 million, while the number of deals decreased by 12.5 per cent to 28 deals from last Friday’s 32 deals.
At the close of trades, Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Plc remained the most active stock by value on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units valued at N8.4 billion, followed by Infrastructure Credit Guarantee (Infracredit) Plc with 2.3 billion units worth N6.5 billion, and CSCS Plc with 73.9 million units exchanged for N5.2 billion.
GNI Plc also closed the session as the most traded stock by volume on a year-to-date basis, with 3.4 billion units sold for N8.4 billion, followed by Infracredit Plc with 2.3 billion units traded for N6.5 billion, and Resourcery Plc with 1.1 billion units transacted for N415.7 million.
