Economy
Oil, Gas Firms Flare 154.1bscf Gas Worth N838.46bn in Five Months
By Adedapo Adesanya
The National Oil Spill Detection and Remediation Agency (NOSDRA) has disclosed that oil and gas companies operating in Nigeria flared 154.1 billion standard cubic feet (SCF) of gas worth N838.46 billion or $539.2 million between January and May 2025.
NOSDRA, in its gas flare report for the period under review, revealed that the amount lost to gas flaring was 21.47 per cent higher than the 126.8 billion standard cubic feet of gas (BSCF) valued at $443.9 million or N690.265 billion recorded in the same period in 2024.
The environmental watchdog also noted that the volume of gas flared in the five-month period in 2025 contributed 8.2 million tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere; had power generation potential of 15,400 gigawatts hour (GWh); while the offending companies were liable for penalties payment of $308.1 million, about N479.1 billion.
In its breakdown of flare data across segments of the oil-producing space, the agency reported that 102.4 billion SCF of gas was flared by oil and gas firms operating in the country’s onshore oil space, accounting for 66.49 per cent of total gas flared in the period under review, and was 60.04 per cent higher than the value lost to gas flaring in this same segment and in the same period in 2024.
NOSDRA added that the volume of gas flared onshore caused the country a loss of 10,200 GWh of electricity, and the emission of 5.4 million tonnes of greenhouse gases; was valued at $358.5 million, about N557.467 billion; while the companies were liable to pay penalties of $204.8 million, about N318.464 billion.
In comparison, between January and May 2024, companies operating onshore flared 64.0 billion SCF of gas valued at $224 million, about N348.32 billion; with penalties payable at $128 million, about N199.04 billion; caused the lost of power generation potential of 6,400 GWh; and contributed 3.4 million tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere.
On the other hand, companies operating offshore accounted for 33.53 per cent of total gas flared between January and May 2025, with 51.7 billion SCF of gas, valued at $180.8 million (N281.144 billion); penalties payable at $103.3 million (N160.632 billion); contributed 2.7 million tonnes of carbon dioxide emission; and eroded 5,200 GWh of electricity generation potential.
Similarly, in the same period in 2024, offshore operations emitted 3.3 million tonnes of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere; caused the loss of power generation capacity of 6,300 GWh; with 62.8 billion SCF of gas flared, valued at $219.9 million (N341.945 billion), and penalties payable at $125.6 million (N195.308 billion).
In addition, NOSDRA stated that the offending companies flared gas from Oil Mining Leases (OML) 04, 05, 11, 13, 14, 17, 18, 22, 28, 23, 24, 38, 40, 42, 43, 72, 49, 54, 90, 95, 67, 70, 104, 59, 99, 100, 101, 102 and Oil Prospecting Licences (OPL) 222, 316 and 306, among others.
It identified the offending companies as Shell Petroleum, Development Company (SPDC), Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC), Chevron Nigeria, Mobil Oil, Elf Petroleum Nigeria, Nigeria Agip Oil Company (NAOC), Addax Petroleum, Texaco Overseas (Nigeria), Esso Exploration and Production Nigeria, Allied Energy Resources, Ultramar Petroleum, Atlas Petroleum; Cromwell, Afric Oil and Marketing, Famfa Oil, Moni Pulo, and South Atlantic Petroleum, among others.
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.
