A fresh debate over the financial contribution of Nigeria’s national oil company to the economy has drawn attention to the contrasting figures attributed to successive administrations, with Prof. Olushola Adeyeye offering a striking comparison between the pre-2023 period and the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.
Speaking in a discussion addressed to Seun, Adeyeye said:
> “Seun, let's talk about NNPC. Between 1999 and 2023, NNPC has contributed about $13 billion to the economy.
> “During OBJ it was $4 billion. Mind you, I deliberately use dollar so that you will not say value of naira.
> “NNPC under Yar'Adua contributed $8 billion.
> “NNPC contributed $1 billion under Jonathan's government.
> “During late Buhari, a friend who I love so well, may God rest his soul, the government was even paying NNPC for doing nothing!
> “Under President Tinubu, in three years, NNPC has contributed $15 billion!!!
> “Now, imagine President Tinubu has been the President in the past.”
The statement attributed to Adeyeye raises an important question about the changing financial relationship between Nigeria's national oil company and the Federation.
It is important, however, to distinguish between NNPC's revenue, statutory payments, remittances to the Federation Account, dividends, taxes and the broader economic contribution of the petroleum industry, because these figures are not necessarily interchangeable.
Historically, NNPC operated as a government-owned national oil corporation. Under the Petroleum Industry Act, NNPC was incorporated as NNPC Limited in 2021, becoming a commercial company while remaining wholly owned by the Federal Government.
The company's financial performance has also changed significantly in recent years. NNPC's audited financial statements show that the company moved from a loss of N803 billion in 2018 to profitability in subsequent years. It reported N287 billion profit in 2020, N674.1 billion in 2021, N2.548 trillion in 2022 and a record N3.297 trillion profit for 2023.
The Tinubu administration has also introduced major changes to the way petroleum revenues are handled. In February 2026, President Tinubu signed an executive order directing greater direct remittance of oil and gas revenues into the Federation Account and removing certain NNPC deductions, including the 30 percent management fee on specified profit oil and gas revenues and the Frontier Exploration Fund arrangement.
More recent NNPC figures indicate that statutory payments have remained substantial. The company reported N7.913 trillion in statutory payments to the Federation between January and July 2026.
Against this background, Adeyeye's comparison presents a striking argument about the financial performance of NNPC across different administrations. His central point is that the figures he cited suggest a substantial increase in the company's contribution during the Tinubu era compared with the periods he referenced.
However, the exact historical figures of $4 billion under Obasanjo, $8 billion under Yar'Adua, $1 billion under Jonathan, and $15 billion under Tinubu should be treated as figures attributed to Adeyeye unless supported by a consistent official dataset using the same definition and accounting period.
What is beyond dispute is that NNPC remains central to Nigeria's public finances and energy economy. Its revenues, statutory payments, petroleum operations and investments have significant implications for government finances and the wider economy.
Adeyeye's concluding question — “Now, imagine President Tinubu has been the President in the past” — therefore frames the debate around what Nigeria's petroleum-sector finances might have looked like under the current administration's reforms if they had been implemented earlier.
The numbers will continue to attract scrutiny, but the broader conversation is unmistakable: Nigeria's oil wealth, how NNPC manages it, and how much ultimately reaches the Federation remain critical issues in assessing the country's economic direction.
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