The Federal Government has ordered foreign oil and gas companies operating in the nation’s hydro-carbon resources industry to offset all forms of tax arrears, estimated to be over $20 billion immediately.
A news report by Reuters linked the directive to a letter sent to the companies earlier this year by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) which categorised the payments as outstanding royalties and taxes for oil and gas production.
According to the news report, the major International Oil Companies (IOCs), namely Royal Dutch Shell, Chevron, Exxon Mobil, Eni, Total and Equinor were each asked to pay into the Federation Account between $2.5 billion and $5 billion.
According to the latest report, the spokesman to Norway’s Equinor, which produced about 45,000 barrels per day (bpd) of oil in Nigeria in 2017, confirmed the request.
The company’s spokesman was quoted as saying that “several operators have received similar claims in a case between the authorities in Nigeria and local authorities in parts of the country”, adding that Equinor sees no merit to the case.
This is even as Exxon Mobil, according to its spokeswoman, “is currently reviewing the matter”, while officials of Shell, Total, Eni and Chevron were said to have declined comment on the issue.
