By Dipo Olowookere
The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) yesterday said it has reached a settlement agreement with Taleveras Group of Companies and two other companies involved in the $184 million crude oil swap.
The others are AITEO Energy Resource Limited, Ontario Oil.
NNPC commended Taleveras and other companies involved in the crude swap for reconciling their accounts and agreeing on a settlement plan to bring this long standing matter to a closure.
Taleveras has committed to an initial prompt settlement of $17 million payment and will further make further payments in $10million tranches.
Ontario is yet to submit its repayment plan, whilst AITEO has reconciled also leveraging on its global business position with NNPC.
The Group Managing Director of the Corporation, Dr Maikanti Baru, told journalists in Abuja that the settlement agreement was a product of ongoing extensive reconciliation process with the companies involved.
A statement on the outcome of the meeting by the Group General Manger, Public Affairs, Mr Ndu Ughamadu quoted Mr Baru as saying, “We have engaged them and positively too. So far, AITEO has been very cooperative and we had extensive reconciliation across all our chains of businesses where they are involved.
“In the case of Televaras, they have agreed to make tranche payment of $10 million while Ontario has also agreed to come to the table with our team and present their repayment schedule,” Mr Baru said.
He also said Taleveras has already pledged to repay $17m and thanked the company for their cooperation so far.
The GMD said the ongoing recovery process is geared towards ensuring probity and accountability in the operations of the Corporation in line with current reforms in the industry.
Mr Baru emphasized the determination of the NNPC under his leadership to recover the outstanding stock of its missing petrol in Capital oil depot noting that MRS had complied.
Only last week, the NNPC announced aggressive measures to achieve full recovery of over 130 million litres of petrol stored in the facilities of two indigenous downstream operators, MRS Limited and Capital Oil & Gas Limited, under a throughput arrangement to ensure a robust strategic reserve.
Providing details of the infraction by the companies, Mr Henry Ikem Obih, NNPC Chief Operating Officer, Downstream explained that the violation was discovered earlier in the year when the Corporation had need to access the over 100 million litres of petrol stored at the Capital Oil & Gas depot for NNPC Retail and just over 30 million litres in MRS Limited depot all in Apapa area of Lagos.
He said though MRS had fully complied by returning the 30 million litres of petrol it expropriated, the Corporation was working assiduously to recover from Capital Oil & Gas the 82 million litres of petrol, valued at N11b, out of over 100 million litres.
