The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has recovered more than N5 billion and $10 million from contractors and government officials implicated in fraudulent activities tied to the turnaround maintenance of Nigeria’s refineries in Port Harcourt, Kaduna, and Warri.
Investigations show the commission is also pursuing the recovery of a further N10 billion and $13 million, which investigators believe were siphoned through inflated contracts and questionable transactions linked to the rehabilitation projects.
Insiders disclosed that EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, has personally taken charge of the probe, voicing serious concern over the persistent failure of the nation’s refineries despite decades of massive public expenditure.
A senior official of the commission, who requested anonymity, confirmed both the recoveries and the ongoing investigations. He noted that Nigeria’s four state-owned refineries have remained largely idle for decades, even as successive administrations poured billions of dollars into repeated turnaround maintenance exercises.
Although funds were committed to revive the facilities, they have consistently failed to meet output expectations, leaving Africa’s top oil producer dependent on imported petroleum products.
According to EFCC investigators, $1.55 billion was channelled to the Port Harcourt refinery, $740.6 million to the Kaduna refinery, and $656.9 million to the Warri refinery. Findings reportedly point to widespread fraud involving inflated invoices, contract manipulation, and suspicious disbursements that undermined the rehabilitation efforts.
“The investigation into the turnaround maintenance of the nation’s refineries has uncovered significant evidence of systemic fraud. Former management teams of the three refineries were repeatedly arrested and interrogated, and so far, recoveries of $10 million and N5 billion have been made from contractors and officials implicated in contract inflation,” a senior EFCC source told our correspondent.
The official further revealed that the EFCC had concluded investigations into some staff of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) allegedly involved in the rehabilitation deals, with plans underway to bring charges against them.
“Both former and serving officials of the NNPCL and the refineries may soon face prosecution,” the source stated.
Another source confirmed that additional recoveries are being pursued, including $13 million and N10 billion traced to fraudulent contractor payments.
Beyond these sums, the EFCC is also examining fresh allegations of contract inflation involving roughly $40 million, allegedly linked to NNPCL officials and contractors responsible for procuring equipment for the refinery rehabilitation projects.
