The Senate Public Accounts Committee has issued a 48-hour deadline to four oil companies, including Seplat Energy, directing them to appear before the panel and respond to outstanding queries arising from the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative’s audit reports.
The companies affected by the directive are Network E&P Nigeria Limited, All Grace Energy Limited, Aradel Energy Limited and Seplat Energy.
The committee, chaired by Senator Ibrahim Hassan Dankwambo, took the decision after expressing dissatisfaction with the companies’ failure to honour repeated invitations to appear before lawmakers.
The latest action forms part of the Senate’s continuing examination of findings contained in NEITI’s 2021, 2022 and 2023 audit reports. The reports examine activities across Nigeria’s extractive industries, including financial obligations, government revenues and compliance by companies operating in the oil and gas sector.
At the committee’s sitting, lawmakers warned that continued non-compliance could result in the National Assembly exercising its constitutional powers to compel the affected companies and their executives to appear.
Senate warns companies over repeated absence
The committee’s decision followed a dispute involving Network E&P Nigeria Limited, which had reportedly communicated its position to the panel after being invited to respond to questions raised in the audit process.
Senator Abdul Ningi criticised the company’s response, describing it as unacceptable and calling on the committee to impose sanctions.
A central issue was the company’s reported position that it was primarily accountable to the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission rather than to the Senate committee.
Ningi rejected that interpretation, arguing that the National Assembly has constitutional authority to summon individuals, companies and public institutions when lawmakers are conducting investigations within their mandate.
He referred to Sections 88 and 89 of the 1999 Constitution, which provide the legal basis for the National Assembly’s investigative and oversight functions.
According to the senator, companies cannot disregard a parliamentary summons simply because they are also subject to oversight by a regulatory agency.
Senator Shehu Kaka Lawan, representing Borno Central, also supported a firm response. He urged the committee to use the powers available to it against companies that continued to ignore its invitations.
Following the exchanges, Dankwambo directed the managing director of Network E&P Nigeria Limited to report before the committee within 48 hours.
The chairman warned that failure to comply could trigger the use of the National Assembly’s legislative powers.
Similar directives were issued to the managing directors of All Grace Energy, Aradel Energy and Seplat Energy after the committee recorded their absence.
The companies are expected to respond to the specific issues raised in the NEITI audit documents and provide any records or explanations necessary for the committee to assess the queries.
Why the NEITI audit matters
NEITI was established to promote transparency and accountability in Nigeria’s extractive sector, particularly in relation to the revenues generated from oil, gas and mining activities.
Its audits compare information supplied by government agencies and companies, helping to identify discrepancies, unpaid obligations and other issues that may affect public revenue.
The Senate committee’s review therefore has implications beyond the individual companies involved.
Nigeria relies heavily on revenues from the oil and gas industry, making the accurate assessment and collection of royalties, taxes, levies and other statutory payments an important part of public financial management.
Where an audit identifies an outstanding obligation, companies may be required to provide evidence showing that the amount has been paid, disputed, reconciled or otherwise resolved.
That process is currently playing out in the case of Dubri Oil Company Limited.
Dubri Oil disputes $3.025 million liability
Dubri Oil Company Limited also appeared before the Senate committee to challenge a financial liability attributed to it in the NEITI audit findings.
The amount in question was reported at approximately $3.025 million.
According to the information presented to the committee, the NUPRC had indicated in 2025 that Dubri Oil had outstanding obligations to the Federal Government.
The alleged liability consisted of about $2.378 million relating to gas flaring and a further $646,605.55 connected to oil production.
Dubri Oil, however, disputed the figures.
Representing the company before the committee, Soyode Clement argued that the amount resulted from a reconciliation problem between the company and the upstream regulator at the time the information used in the audit was compiled.
Clement told lawmakers that the matter had subsequently been reconciled and maintained that Dubri Oil did not have an outstanding debt corresponding to the amount cited in the report.
The company also submitted documents intended to support its position.
Rather than immediately accepting or rejecting the explanation, the committee said it would examine the documentation before reaching a decision on whether the company should be cleared of the liability.
The approach reflects the broader purpose of the Senate’s review: to determine whether audit queries represent genuine outstanding government revenue or whether some of the figures arose from reporting differences, delayed reconciliations or other administrative issues.
Broader questions over oil-sector revenue
The proceedings come amid continuing efforts by Nigerian authorities to improve revenue collection and strengthen accountability within the petroleum industry.
For lawmakers, unresolved audit queries can represent more than accounting discrepancies. They can potentially point to revenue that has not reached government coffers or obligations that remain unsettled for extended periods.
At the same time, companies facing audit queries have the opportunity to provide evidence, reconcile disputed figures and explain circumstances surrounding payments.
The distinction is important because an amount identified in an audit does not necessarily establish that a company has deliberately refused to pay money owed to the government. Some liabilities may remain subject to reconciliation or clarification between operators and regulators.
That is why the committee’s decision to examine Dubri Oil’s documentation before making a determination could become significant as the wider review progresses.
Four companies now face deadline
For Network E&P, All Grace Energy, Aradel Energy and Seplat Energy, however, the immediate issue is attendance before the Senate panel.
The 48-hour deadline puts pressure on the companies to respond directly to the lawmakers’ invitations and address the audit queries under consideration.
The committee has made clear that it regards repeated non-attendance as a serious matter and is prepared to escalate the issue if the latest directives are ignored.
The development also underscores the increasingly assertive role of parliamentary oversight in the management of Nigeria’s petroleum revenues.
As the Senate continues its examination of NEITI’s audit findings, the central questions will be whether outstanding obligations can be verified, disputed figures can be reconciled and government revenues identified as due to the Federation can be properly accounted for.
For the affected oil companies, the next stage will be to present their explanations and supporting records before the committee. For lawmakers, the proceedings provide another opportunity to test the accuracy of audit findings and determine whether additional action is required to protect public revenue.
The outcome of the review could therefore extend beyond the four companies currently facing the 48-hour summons, particularly if the committee identifies broader patterns in the handling, reconciliation and collection of financial obligations across Nigeria’s oil and gas industry.
