The probe on crude oil swap programme and the Offshore Processing Agreements (OPAs) involving the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and some local oil and gas companies, which started at EFCC (Economic and Financial Crimes Commission) is also being looked at by the DSS in the last two weeks, has led to the interrogation, arrest, watch-listing and seizure of international passports of some NNPC officials and oil trading firms by the DSS (Department of State Service).
The crude oil swaps refer to NNPC’s allocation of a certain quantity, usually about 50 per cent, of its domestic crude oil of 445,000 barrels per day (bpd) to oil traders, who in turn sell the crude oil in the international market and import petroleum products, including derivatives or byproducts, on behalf of NNPC and/or PPMC for onward sale and distribution in the country.
However, the swaps and OPAs, in recent years, have been riddled with allegations that the Nigerian oil traders which got the crude oil allocations from NNPC were defaulting on their obligations to the corporation by not supplying either all of the petroleum products or part of the products in accordance with their contracts.
Oil and gas sector in Nigeria greatly needs to be sanitized.
credit: thisday
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