Total refutes claim of indebtedness, puts investments in Nigeria in last five years at $10bn

Total Nigeria Plc has refuted allegations that it is among nine major oil marketing companies that Nigeria’s anti-graft agency, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) recovered a sum of N328.9 billion from.

The company said it was invited to the EFCC offices on May 04, 2017, and stated that it was not indebted to NNPC/PPMC except as in the ordinary course of business and pre-agreed terms – of a 14-day credit window for payment of products received from NNPC/PPMC.

Total’s managing director, Nicolas Terraz, at the 2017 Nigeria Annual International Conference & Exhibition of the Society for Petroleum Engineers, held in Lagos, restated the company’s unflinching committed to the future of Nigeria, pointing out that the oil giant has invested $10 billion in the Nigerian oil and gas sector in the last five years.

The anti-graft agency had found that some oil marketers were indebted to the federal government to the tune of N915 billion between 2010 and 2016.

It also alleged that the oil marketers had continued to obtain petroleum products from the government without proper payment in violation of the NNPC/PPMC credit facility regulations. The probe of the firms led to the discovery of N258,9 billion being the amount they held back from the oil corporation.

The EFCC said the recovered N328.9 billion represents the cost of products the companies collected from the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation and its subsidiary, Pipelines and Product Marketing Company, PPMC, but refused to pay as and when due. The recovery was sequel to a petition against the leadership of Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation and PPMC.