The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has filed a lawsuit against the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) over its alleged failure to account for N500 billion in oil revenue that was not remitted to the Federation Account between October and December 2024.
The suit, marked FHC/L/MSC/553/2025, was filed last Friday at the Federal High Court in Lagos by SERAP’s legal team, which includes Kolawole Oluwadare, Oluwakemi Oni, and Valentina Adegoke.
This legal move follows recent revelations by the World Bank, which stated that NNPCL generated N1.1 trillion in revenue from crude oil sales and other sources in 2024 but remitted only N600 billion to the national treasury, leaving a shortfall of N500 billion.
NNPCL, in response to an earlier Freedom of Information (FoI) request by SERAP, claimed that the FoI Act does not apply to it—a claim SERAP strongly disputes. The organization argues that a recent Supreme Court ruling affirmed that the FoI Act applies to all public records, including those held by NNPCL.
In the suit, SERAP is asking the court to issue an order of mandamus to compel the NNPCL to disclose the whereabouts of the missing N500 billion and to allow anti-corruption agencies to investigate the matter.
The group also wants the court to direct NNPCL to identify those responsible for the unaccounted funds, surcharge them the full amount, and hand them over for investigation and prosecution.
According to SERAP, the unremitted funds are a violation of the Nigerian Constitution, the FoI Act, and the country’s international anti-corruption obligations. The group says the missing oil revenue has worsened Nigeria’s economic crisis and deprived citizens of much-needed public services.
“There is a legitimate public interest in knowing what happened to the N500 billion,” SERAP said. “This money belongs to Nigerians and should have been used to improve lives through better education, healthcare, infrastructure, and other services.”
The organization stressed that despite the country’s oil wealth, Nigerians have seen little benefit due to mismanagement, corruption, and lack of transparency in the oil sector. It said recovering the missing funds is critical to addressing poverty, boosting development, and meeting the government’s obligations to the people.
SERAP also cited reports from the Auditor-General of the Federation and the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), which have documented similar cases of missing oil revenues in the past.
The World Bank’s recent disclosure has added urgency to the need for full transparency in NNPCL’s operations. SERAP is urging the judiciary to hold the company accountable and ensure that public funds are properly managed and used for the benefit of all Nigerians.
As of the time of filing this report, no date has been fixed for the hearing of the case.
