Contractors, Civil Servants Involved In N5B EFCC-Recovered NNPCL Funds

Nigeria’s oil refineries in Port Harcourt, Kaduna, and Warri have remained largely dormant for decades, despite repeated promises and heavy public investment in their rehabilitation. Successive governments have released billions of dollars for what is called “turnaround maintenance,” but the refineries have failed to operate optimally, leaving the country dependent on imported petroleum products.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has now uncovered large-scale fraud that crippled these projects. According to the EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, the discovery of massive contract fraud and inflated payments prompted him to take direct charge of the investigation. “Investigators discovered fraudulent dealings through over-invoicing, contract inflation, and questionable payments, which were largely responsible for the malfunctioning of the refineries,” an EFCC official revealed.

EFCC’s Recovery: N5 Billion and $10 Million Returned

The EFCC confirmed that a total of over N5 billion and $10 million has already been recovered from contractors and civil servants who were implicated in the fraudulent contracts. These funds were traced to inflated invoices and irregular payments made during the rehabilitation works.

A senior EFCC commission official disclosed, “The recoveries were made from some contractors and government officials involved in over-invoicing and inflated payments. While we have recovered these sums, investigations are still ongoing to recover an additional N10 billion and $13 million siphoned through refinery maintenance contracts.”

The Key Players: Contractors and Civil Servants Under Probe

The ongoing investigation has placed both serving and retired officials of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and the refineries’ management under scrutiny. The EFCC confirmed that:

Former management teams of Port Harcourt, Kaduna, and Warri refineries were repeatedly interrogated and arrested in connection with fraudulent dealings.

Contractors hired to procure equipment and oversee rehabilitation works were discovered to have engaged in contract inflation running into tens of millions of dollars.

Serving NNPCL officials are among those whose files have been concluded, with charges expected to be filed soon.

“The commission is ready to file charges against both former and present management officials of NNPCL and the refineries who have been implicated in the contracts,” an EFCC source disclosed.

Investigators revealed shocking figures allocated for refinery maintenance:

$1.55 billion for Port Harcourt refinery

$740 million for Kaduna refinery

$656 million for Warri refinery

Despite these staggering amounts, the facilities remain non-functional. The EFCC noted that much of the money was drained through fraudulent practices involving contractors and complicit civil servants.

What Next? Prosecution and Further Recoveries

With the recovery of N5 billion and $10 million already achieved, the EFCC is now preparing legal action against indicted officials and contractors. Additional probes are underway into fresh allegations of $40 million contract inflation, suggesting that the scale of corruption could be even larger than initially uncovered.

A senior EFCC officer confirmed that more funds will be recovered in the coming weeks, stressing that the government is determined to hold those responsible accountable. “Investigations are already concluded on some officials of NNPCL involved in the rehabilitation contracts, and the commission is ready to file charges against them,” the official said.