The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has filed a lawsuit against the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), demanding accountability for allegedly missing or diverted oil revenues amounting to ₦22.3 billion, $49.7 million, £14.3 million, and €5.2 million.
The suit follows findings contained in the 2022 audited report of the Auditor-General of the Federation, published on September 9, 2025, which highlighted multiple financial irregularities within the national oil company.
Filed last Friday at the Federal High Court in Abuja under suit number FHC/ABJ/CS/195/2026, SERAP is seeking an order of mandamus compelling NNPCL to fully account for the alleged missing funds. The organisation also wants the court to direct the company to disclose detailed information on the transactions involved, including disbursements, contractors, and individuals who received the funds.
SERAP argued that the alleged diversion of oil revenues reflects a broader failure of accountability and transparency within NNPCL, adding that the funds in question belong to Nigerians and should be recovered for public use.
According to the organisation, granting the reliefs sought would help curb impunity and ensure that diverted oil revenues are returned to serve their intended purpose of providing essential public services.
SERAP noted that the Auditor-General has repeatedly reported cases of missing oil funds at NNPCL over the years, warning that Nigerians continue to suffer the consequences of these losses amid worsening economic conditions.
The 2022 audit report cited numerous irregular expenditures, including payments for abandoned or unexecuted contracts, unverified transactions, and failure to deduct statutory taxes. Examples include over ₦292 million paid for an unfinished emergency facility in Abuja, more than £14 million spent on unaccounted repairs to NNPCL’s London office, and $22 million paid for crude oil transactions lacking adequate documentation.
Other questionable payments flagged include ₦2.3 billion paid to staff as car cash options without approval, failure to deduct over ₦247 million and $529,000 in taxes from contractors, and billions of naira spent on consultancy, vessel hire, and infrastructure projects with missing or insufficient records.
The report also raised concerns over payments such as more than €5.1 million for operations at the Atlas Cove Jetty Facility, $1 million paid as legacy debt for chartered vessels, and nearly $1.93 million for time-charter hire of petroleum transport vessels, all without proper justification.
Additional irregularities included ₦246 million paid for steel pipes for the Warri Refinery that were never delivered, ₦200 million paid for tax renegotiation settlements without due process, and multiple consultancy payments where no evidence of work done was found.
The Auditor-General further reported that NNPCL failed to remit over ₦12.7 billion in operating surplus for December 2020 into the general reserve fund, warning that the funds may have been diverted. Other cases cited include undocumented payments of ₦152 million for a procurement contract linked to the Office of the Inspector-General of Police and ₦25 million paid as additional consultancy fees without justification.
SERAP said these irregularities constitute serious breaches of public trust, Nigeria’s anti-corruption laws, and the country’s constitutional and international obligations. The group is asking the court to order recovery of the alleged diverted funds and ensure accountability.
No date has yet been fixed for the hearing of the suit.
