Economy
FIRS attributes increase oil output target to activities of PINL, others
Federal Inland Revenue Service has said that for the first time in many years, it has met the oil and gas sector revenue benchmark for year 2025 due mainly to the effective policing of oil facilities. FIRS attributed the milestone to a sustained peace in the Niger Delta region championed by operations of security agencies and pipeline surveillance contractors like Pipeline Infrastructure Nigeria Limited PINL, among others. Spokesman for FIRS Executive Chairman Dare Adekanmbi said this in a statement. Chairman of FIRS, Dr. Zacch Adedeji, made the statement when he received the delegation of military top brass led by Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa. Adedeji had said that the improved security situation in oil-producing areas had boosted production, resulting in greater profitability for companies in the sector and higher tax revenue for the federation.
“The coordinating director of the Large Tax Group made a presentation at our management meeting today on tax collection to date, and I am glad to say that, for the first time in a long while, we met our oil and gas target,” Adedeji said. This is actually as a result of the peace that has been maintained where oil and gas facilities are located. Production is happening, and companies are making more profit from it.” He commended the Armed Forces and other security agencies for their contribution to maintaining stability, noting that the success aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s commitment to “taxing prosperity and not poverty.” Prosperity can only be achieved in an atmosphere of peace. The Armed Forces are critical stakeholders and central to sustaining peace in the country,” he said.
Meanwhile, Dr Akpos Mezeh, General Manager Community and Stakeholders Relations of PINL at a monthly engagement with pipeline host communities from Rivers, Abia and Imo States held in Port Harcourt, acknowledged that its activities contributed to the attainment of the nation’s oil revenue target. ”PINL recorded zero infraction in the past month contributing to increased national crude oil production. Federal Government has met its 2025 oil and gas sector revenue due to peace and stability in the communities hosting oil and gas facilities in the Niger Delta, which the Chairman of FIRS has confirmed. “These results underscore the strength and effectiveness of our partnership, which can be attributed to consistent application of proven strategies such as safety measures for surveillance personnel, timely salary payments, rapid dispute resolution within communities, amongst others, which combined efforts have resulted in reduced downtime and increased trust”.
He announced some of the company’s achievements including interventions in an oil spill location in Yorla, Kpean community in Khana Local government area and bursting of illegal bunkering sites in Umubule and Oyigbo communities both in Rivers State. Mezeh, used the medium to update the stakeholders on its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) packages for youths and women of the host communities. “We reaffirm our unwavering commitment to sustainable energy security, in full alignment with the Renewed Hope Agenda of the Federal Government. We have a shared responsibility to rescue our economy from further bleeding, and achieving this goal requires that all hands remain on deck. We look forward to your honest and constructive feedback on how we can sustain and surpass our outstanding records in combating pipeline vandalism, oil theft, and environmental pollution,” he said.
Speaking at the stakeholders meeting, Head of Field Operations, Eastern Corridor of the Project Monitoring Office, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited, NNPCL, Engr Akponine Omojevwe called for effective collaboration between the host communities and PINL.
“We want to emphasize that, there must be collaboration between PINL and the communities. PINL has gone the extra mile by approving scholarships for the host communities, they have gone out to make sure their areas of operations benefit from their activities, let us make sure that in this task of securing the pipelines, we support them, don’t destroy their equipments,” he urged. The collaborative security is operations between PINL and the Special Prosecution Task Force (SPT) of the Federal Government have led to the busting of two illegal refining sites in Oyigbo local government area of Rivers State.mThe sites operating under the cover of a logistics company, Emekus Nigeria Ltd, and a large piggery used for active illegal refining of millions of litres of stolen petroleum products with equipment of the illegal business found on the sites.
While Emekus Nigeria Limited is located at Umuebule axis of Oyigbo, the piggery is located at a remote axis, east of the bank of the Imo River. Bags of stolen crude awaiting refining, 3 tanks of different capacities and a 33,000-litre capacity truck, among others were confiscated by the surveillance company. During the inspection of the piggery led by CSP Omar Sini, Head of Investigation Special Prosecution Team of the Inter-Agency Task force on the Hydrocarbon Sector, a suspect, believed to be the farm manager took to his heels when he sited the team approaching the farm. Andrew Ebikeme of PINL explained how the discovery was made; “This is an illegal refining site with products from stolen crude. The area was discovered using intelligence information provided by PINL community based surveillance guards.
“We came here and what we saw was mind boggling. As you can see, this is supposed to be a logistics base but behind we have this illegal activity going on. Right now this has been confiscated by the special prosecution team”. He said that to be able to make the discovery, PINL had maintained a healthy and cordial working relationship with the SPT and all other stakeholders on the protection of the nation’s oil assets including different strata of the host communities. On his part, CSP Sini, Head of Investigation, Special Prosecution Team of the Inter-Agency Taskforce on Illicit Activities on the Hydrocarbon Sector confirmed the illegal refining sites were busted relying on credible intelligence from PINL surveillance officers. He said that 3 suspects – a woman and 2 other accomplices were arrested at Emekus Nigeria Ltd and would be prosecuted immediately investigations were concluded. He added that about 108 suspects were already remanded across the Niger Delta and the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. CSP Sini stated that the SPT had secured 2 convictions with 38 active cases at trial levels and others at investigation level.
The Arab Africa Trade Bridges (AATB) Program and the Federal Republic of Nigeria formalized a partnership with the signing of the AATB Membership Agreement, officially welcoming Nigeria as the Program’s newest member country. The signing ceremony took place in Abuja on the sidelines of the 5th AATB Board of Governors Meeting, hosted by the Federal Government of Nigeria.
The Membership Agreement was signed by Eng. Adeeb Y. Al Aama, the CEO of the International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC) and AATB Program Secretary General, and H.E. Mr. Wale Edun, Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Federal Republic of Nigeria. The Agreement will provide a strategic and operational framework to support Nigeria’s efforts in trade competitiveness, promote export diversification, strengthen priority value chains, and advance capacity-building efforts in line with national development priorities. Areas of collaboration will include trade promotion, agribusiness modernization, SME development, businessmen missions, trade facilitation, logistics efficiency, and digital trade readiness.
The Honourable Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun, called for deeper trade collaboration between African and Arab nations, stressing the importance of value-added Agribusiness and industrial partnerships for regional growth. Speaking in Abuja at the Agribusiness Matchmaking Forum ahead of the AATB Board of Governors Meeting, the Minister said the shifting global economy makes it essential for African and Arab nations to rely more on regional cooperation, investment and shared markets.
He highlighted projections showing Arab-Africa trade could grow by more than US$37 billion in the next three years and urged partners to prioritize value addition rather than raw commodity exports. He noted that Nigeria’s growing industrial base and upcoming National Single Window reforms will support efficiency, investment and private-sector expansion.
“This is a moment to turn opportunity into action”, he said. “By working together, we can build stronger value chains, create jobs and support prosperity across our regions”, Edun emphasized. “As African and Arab nations embark on this journey of deeper trade collaboration, the potential for growth and development is vast. With a shared vision and commitment to value-added partnerships, we can unlock new opportunities, drive economic growth, and create a brighter future for our people.”
Speaking during the event, Eng. Adeeb Y. Al Aama, Chief Executive Officer of ITFC and Secretary General of the AATB Program, stated: “We are pleased to welcome Nigeria to be part of the AATB Program. Nigeria stands as one of Africa’s most dynamic and resilient economies in Africa, with a rapidly expanding private sector and strong potential across agribusiness, energy, manufacturing, and digital industries. Through this Membership Agreement, we look forward to collaborating closely with Nigerian institutions to strengthen value chains, expand regional market access, enhance trade finance and investment opportunities, and support the country’s development priorities.”
The signing of this Agreement underscores AATB’s continued engagement with African countries and its evolving portfolio of programs supporting trade and investment. In recent years, AATB has worked on initiatives across agribusiness, textiles, logistics, digital trade, export readiness under the AfCFTA framework, and other regional initiatives such as the Common African Agro-Parks (CAAPs) Programme.
With Nigeria’s accession, the AATB Program extends it’s presence in the region and adds a key partner working toward advancing trade-led development and fostering inclusive economic growth.
Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved the 2026–2028 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF), a key fiscal document that outlines Nigeria’s revenue expectations, macroeconomic assumptions, and spending priorities for the next three years. The approval followed Wednesday’s FEC meeting presided over by President Bola Tinubu at the State House, Abuja. The Minister of Budget and Economic Planning, Senator Atiku Bagudu made this known after the meeting.
The Minister said the Federal Government is projecting a total revenue inflow of N34.33 trillion in 2026, including N4.98 trillion expected from government-owned enterprises. Bagudu said that the projected revenue is N6.55 trillion lower than earlier estimates, adding that federal allocations are expected to drop by about N9.4 trillion, representing a 16% decline compared to the 2025 budget.
He said that statutory transfers are expected to amount to about N3 trillion within the same fiscal year. On macroeconomic assumptions, FEC adopted an oil production benchmark of 2.6 million barrels per day (mbpd) for 2026, although a more conservative 1.8 mbpd will be used for budgeting purposes. An oil price benchmark of $64 per barrel and an exchange rate of N1,512 per dollar were also approved.
Bagudu said the exchange rate assumption reflects projections tied to economic and political developments ahead of the 2027 general elections. He said the exchange rate assumption took into account the fiscal outlook ahead of the 2027 general elections.
The minister said that all the parameters were based on macroeconomic analysis by the Budget Office and other relevant agencies. Bagudu said FEC also reviewed comments from cabinet members before approving the Medium-Term Fiscal Expenditure Ceiling (MFTEC), which sets expenditure limits. Earlier, the Senate approved the external borrowing plan of $21.5 billion presented by President Tinubu for consideration The loans, according to the Senate, were part of the MTEF and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP) for the 2025 budget.
The spot rate on Nigerian Treasury bills has been increased by 146 basis points by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) following tight subscription levels at the main auction on Wednesday. The spot rate on Treasury bills with one-year maturity has now surpassed Nigeria’s 16.05% inflation by 145 basis points following a recent decision to keep the policy rate at 27%.
The Apex Bank came to the primary market with N700 billion Treasury bills offer size across standard tenors, including 91-day, 182-day and 364 day maturities. Details from the auction results showed that demand settled slightly above the total offers as investors began to seek higher returns on naira assets despite disinflation.
Total subscription came in at about N775 billion versus N700 billion offers floated at the main auction. The results showed rising appetite for duration as investors parked about 90% of their bids on Nigerian Treasury bills with 364 days maturity. The CBN opened N100 billion worth of 91 days bills for subscription, but the offer received underwhelming bids totalling N44.17 billion.
The CBN allotted N42.80 billion for the short-term instrument at the spot rate of 15.30%, the same as the previous auction. Total demand for 182 days Nigerian Treasury bills settled at N33.38 billion as against N150 billion that the authority pushed out for subscription. The CBN raised N30.36 billion from 182 days bills allotted to investors at the spot rate of 15.50%, the same as the previous auction.
Investors staked N697.29 billion on N450 billion in 364-day Treasury bills that was offered for subscription. The CBN raised N636.46 billion from the longest tenor at the spot rate of 17.50%, up from 16.04% at the previous auction.
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