Ike Amos
Abuja — Nigeria earned N2.048 trillion from the petroleum industry in four months, from January to April 2020, rising by 8.59 per cent from N1.886 trillion recorded in the same period in 2019, according to data obtained from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).
According to the CBN data, Petroleum Profit Tax/Royalties accounted for 57.28 per cent of the total oil earnings in the period under review, with N1.173 trillion; while crude oil and gas export accounted for 10.11 per cent of oil revenue with N207.07 billion.
In addition, domestic crude oil and gas sales and others accounted for 7.19 per cent and 25.6 per cent, respectively, of oil revenue in in the first four months of 2020, with N147.15 billion and N524.02 billion, respectively.
The CBN noted that rise in oil revenue in the four-month period was in spite of the decline in the price of crude oil in the period under review occasioned by the COVID-19 pandemic.
Specifically, for April 2020, CBN stated that crude oil prices continued their downward trend, recording sharp drops amid global supply glut in the spot market, and weak demand due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
It said: “Notwithstanding the significant drop in the price of Bonny Light crude, coupled with the expected decline in collectable taxes due to the COVID-19 restrictions, the federally collected revenue in April 2020, amounted to N915.28 billion. This was however, 30.4 per cent below the benchmark. The retained revenue of the Federal government in April was N285.66 billion, while total expenditure was N773.91 billion, resulting in an estimated deficit of N488.25 billion.
“Public debt outstanding as at March 31, 2020, stood at N24.52 trillion; with the domestic and external components accounting for 59.3 per cent and 40.7 per cent of the total debt stock, respectively.”
The CBN added that despite the significant drop in the price of the Bonny Light crude from $32.2 per barrel in March, to $14.3 per barrel in April, the receipt exceeded the collections of N729.64 and N762.16 in March 2020 and April 2019, by 25.4 and 20.1 per cent, respectively.
It added that: “The apparent insulation of April revenue from the adverse effects of COVID19 could be explained by the fact that government revenues usually come with lags, particularly, oil revenue where oil sales contracts sometimes take as much as 90 days to materialize. However, relative to the benchmark revenue of N1.316 trillion, collection in April experienced a shortfall of 30.4 per cent.
“The observed shortfall implies lower statutory allocations to the three tiers of government. Consequently, after statutory deductions and transfers, a net balance of N620.52 billion was shared among the three-tiers of government.”
The CBN disclosed that domestic crude oil production and exports rose, month-on-month, amid plummeting prices, thus sustaining the glut in the crude oil market, noting specifically that Nigeria’s crude oil production, including condensates and natural gas liquids, recorded a marginal increase of 0.05 million barrels per day (mbd) or 2.7 per cent, month-on-month, to average 1.93 mbd .
Of the 1.93 mbd or 57.9 mbd, the CBN report noted that exports accounted for an average of 1.48 mbd or 44.4 mb, while allocation for domestic consumption at 0.45 mbd or 13.50 mb accounted for the balance in the review month.