A review of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) 2024 financial statements by SaharaReporters reveals that N7.1 trillion was spent on fuel subsidies last year to offset energy costs. The expense was listed in the report as an “energy security expense.”
The report explains that this expense arises “when there is differential between exchange rate used to freeze the Premium Motor Spirit ex-coastal price and the prevailing exchange rate at point of import settlement.” It is charged against funds that would otherwise have been remitted to the federation accounts.
For comparison, N4.8 trillion was spent on the same item in 2023. This comes despite repeated claims by President Bola Tinubu’s administration that fuel subsidies had been eliminated.
Data from the Nigeria Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (NEITI) shows that prior to 2022, the highest subsidy paid was N2.1 trillion in 2011. In 2022, the government spent N3.36 trillion, making N7.1 trillion in 2024 the largest subsidy expenditure in two decades.
President Tinubu, who assumed office on May 29, 2023, had announced subsidy removal to reduce government wastage and boost revenue for development. Yet, the 2024 figures indicate that subsidy-related spending has surged even higher, raising questions about the administration’s policy implementation.
