President Bola Tinubu don approve the cancellation of large chunk of debts wey Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) owe the Federation Account, wiping off about $1.42 billion and N5.57 trillion.
The approval show for official document released by Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), titled “Report of October 2025 Revenue Collection Presented at the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) Meeting Held on 18th November 2025.”
The presidential directive clear all legacy debts wey accumulate up to December 31, 2024, and finally settle long-standing dispute between NNPC Ltd and the Federation. However, current liabilities from 2025 operations still dey under monitoring.
Wetín the NUPRC Report Talk
Under the section “Recovery from NNPC Ltd Outstanding Obligations,” NUPRC explain say debts wey dem report at October 2025 FAAC meeting stand at $1.48 billion and N6.33 trillion. These debts come from PSC, DSDP, RA & MCA liftings, as well as JV and PSC royalty receivables.
Following President Tinubu approval, about $1.42 billion and N5.57 trillion from the total obligations don officially cancel. NUPRC confirm say all accounting records to reflect the debt cancellation don already enter the Federation Account.
The commission add say the presidential decision follow recommendations from Stakeholder Alignment Committee wey reconcile all debts between NNPC Ltd and the Federation, especially royalty and lifting-related liabilities up to end of 2024.
2025 Debts Still Dey, Revenue Shortfall Continue
Despite the cancellation of legacy debts, new obligations wey NNPC Ltd accumulate in 2025 still remain outstanding.
According to NUPRC report, statutory obligations from January to October 2025 reach $56.81 million and N1.02 trillion for PSC & MCA liftings and JV royalty receivables.
Revenue shortfall still be serious issue. For November 2025 alone, royalty collection reach only N605.26 billion, far below the N1.14 trillion target, leaving deficit of N538.92 billion.
As at November 30, 2025, total approved revenue stand at N13.25 trillion, but actual collection reach just N7.60 trillion, creating gap of N5.65 trillion. For royalties alone, the shortfall reach N5.63 trillion.
The report also show say revenue collection drop from N873.10 billion in October 2025 to N605.26 billion in November, highlighting continued challenges in revenue mobilisation.
Wetín This Decision Mean
The cancellation of the debts signal major step to finally settle historical financial wahala between NNPC Ltd and the Federation. The move effectively remove about 96 per cent of dollar-denominated and 88 per cent of naira-denominated legacy debts.
However, the figures still show say serious structural problems dey for oil and gas revenue collection. With 2025 debts still dey pile up and royalties consistently missing targets, experts say government need stronger fiscal discipline and closer monitoring of NNPC operations.
What You Suppose Know
Despite the revenue challenges, NNPC Ltd report strong financial performance recently. The company say revenue jump to N5.08 trillion for October 2025, up from N4.27 trillion recorded in September.
According to NNPC Monthly Report Summary for October 2025, profit after tax (PAT) also rise sharply to N447 billion, compared to N216 billion the previous month.
Earlier, NNPC Ltd announce say it record profit after tax of N5.4 trillion from total revenue of N45.1 trillion for the full year ended 2024.
