Economy
Pass PIB to Stabilise Oil Industry—NNPC Begs NASS
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The National has been urged to pass the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) into law to dispel the air of uncertainty around the industry, create an enabling environment for the industry to flourish and dissuade the International Oil Companies (IOCs) from exiting the country.
This call was made by the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mr Maikanti Baru, while speaking on the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) morning talk show, ‘GoodMorning Nigeria’ with the topic: ‘Nigeria Lingering LNG Projects’.
Mr Baru, who spoke on the programme on Monday in Abuja, noted that the long delay in the passage of the PIB had led to uncertainty in the fiscal terms, while the recent move by the National Assembly to amend the NLNG Act had also dampened the optimism of investors in the industry.
“The Review of the NLNG Act by the National Assembly is causing a challenge for the Federal Government and the IOCs and it is sending wrong signals to the international community about how business is done in the country,” Mr Baru stated.
The NNPC helmsman said the NLNG market was growing at a tremendous rate, disclosing that between now and 2030, it is projected that the market would grow by 65 percent.
He said the market for LNG was there and that the Federal Government would do everything to take advantage of the opportunity.
Mr Baru informed that the government would do everything to ensure the take-off of Bonny NLNG Train 7 and the Brass LNG in the months ahead after which the Olokola LNG would come on board if the fundamentals were strong.
He stated that the NNPC was refocusing on the Brass LNG and rebuilding the confidence of investors on the project after the exit of Conocophillips a few years ago, adding that Nigerians and the Federal Government would gain a lot from the project in terms of taxes, royalties and profits.
He noted that when the project comes on stream, it would create massive employment opportunities for Nigerians.
“We are refocusing on Brass LNG and rebuilding the confidence of the IOCs in the project. It has a lot to do for Nigerians as it will create employment opportunities and create more revenue opportunities for the Federal Government. We will continue to put the right enablers in place for the project to go on,” he averred.
The NNPC GMD described the Bonny NLNG as one of the biggest success stories of the Nigerian oil and gas industry since it came on stream in 1995, affirming that the project has generated $90 billion revenue, $30 billion dividends and contributed 4 per cent to the country’s Gross Domestic Product since inception.
Mr Baru noted that the focus of the industry was to ensure stable security of investment, personnel and investors and to ensure that all community issues were addressed in order to boost revenue for the government and investors from the industry.
On his part, former GMD of the NNPC, Mr Jackson Gaius Obaseki, commended the current leadership of the NNPC for its commitment to the growth and development of the oil and gas Industry, noting that the leadership has what it takes to make the Bonny NLNG Train 7, Brass LNG project and OK LNG to materialize.
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.
