TheCable

The house of representatives says it will investigate an alleged missing 5.2 million barrels of crude oil under the direct sales direct purchase (DSDP) scheme from 2018 to date.

The resolution was passed during plenary session on Wednesday, following the adoption of a motion of urgent public importance sponsored by Abubakar Yalleman, lawmaker representing Kaugama/Mallam Madori federal constituency.

While moving the motion, Yalleman referred the house to a newspaper report of February 14, 2021, that drew national attention to the “unfortunate details of how Nigeria’s crude oil is being stolen or diverted daily.”

The lawmaker noted that: “essentially, almost half of the 10.9 million barrels of crude oil allocated for domestic supply between June 2018 and July 2019 as reported by the NNPC is either stolen or diverted.”

“The average price for Nigerian crude oil in 2018 was $65 which means that the unaccounted volume may have denied the country USD339 million at a time of acute revenue deficit,” he said.

“Deeply worried by this report and would like to know the status of the 5.2 million barrels allocated for domestic supply in 2018 till date; crude oil allocation per refineries and the rationale for such allocation. In a case of inadequate production capacity, what happens to the un-utilized stock of crude oil?

“At the spate of missing critical national revenue and is worried that unless these leakages are plugged, they will deepen the national deficit even further thus depriving the country of the much-needed development.”

Following unanimous adoption of the motion, the house resolved to set up an ad-hoc committee to investigate the “allocation of crude oil under DSDP scheme from 2018 till date, crude oil allocation per refinery and the rationale for such allocation, and what happens to the unutilised stock of crude oil in the case of a refinery with inadequate production capacity.”