The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has recovered more than N38.66 billion in cash and assets in an ongoing investigation into the alleged diversion of funds meant for the rehabilitation of Nigeria’s state-owned refineries, as several former and serving officials of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) face possible prosecution.
The anti-graft agency disclosed that the investigation has so far yielded N9.4 billion in cash, $21.2 million—valued at approximately N29.26 billion at the Central Bank of Nigeria’s official exchange rate—and several landed properties linked to individuals under investigation.
The probe, described as one of the largest corruption investigations in Nigeria’s oil sector, focuses on the management of approximately $2.79 billion released between 2021 and 2023 for the rehabilitation and turnaround maintenance of the Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna refineries.
Investigators are examining allegations of criminal conspiracy, diversion of public funds, money laundering, abuse of office, procurement fraud, economic sabotage and criminal breach of trust involving officials of the NNPCL, its subsidiary, the NNPC Engineering and Technical Company Limited (NETCO), former and serving refinery managing directors, as well as contractors including Daewoo Engineering Nigeria Limited and Tecnimont SPA.
The Federal Government had approved about $1.56 billion for the rehabilitation of the Port Harcourt Refinery, $740.7 million for the Kaduna Refinery, and $492.3 million for the Warri Refinery under a comprehensive turnaround maintenance programme.
Despite the massive investment, investigators said there was little evidence of significant improvement in refinery operations, raising concerns that large portions of the funds may have been misappropriated or fraudulently disbursed.
The findings have renewed public scrutiny over repeated government efforts to revive Nigeria’s long-idle refineries, which have continued to operate below installed capacity despite billions of dollars spent on rehabilitation.
As part of the investigation, the EFCC had last year arrested several senior NNPCL officials, including former Chief Financial Officer Umar Isa, former Managing Director of the Warri Refinery Tunde Bakare, and former Managing Directors of the Port Harcourt Refinery, Ahmed Dikko and Ibrahim Onoja.
The commission has since interrogated more than 30 senior NNPCL officials and over 50 officials of contracting firms and subcontractors involved in the refinery projects.
Investigators reviewed procurement documents, payment records, project execution reports, bank transactions and company ownership records obtained from the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and commercial banks.
According to sources familiar with the investigation, the EFCC uncovered widespread violations of procurement regulations, questionable payment approvals and alleged manipulation of contract processes by officials across different levels of management.
One of the key suspects, former Port Harcourt Refinery Managing Director Ahmed Dikko, is accused of authorising direct payments to contractors from provisional sum funds in violation of contractual provisions that required such payments to be processed through Tecnimont.
Investigators reportedly traced assets worth N983.9 million, $227,030 and three landed properties to Dikko, which they said he could not satisfactorily account for. An interim forfeiture order has already been secured on the properties, while criminal charges are being prepared.
Another senior official, Jimoh Yisawu, who was linked to the rehabilitation of the Warri Refinery, is alleged to have approved payments to unqualified contractors, authorised inflated invoices and contract mark-ups exceeding $10 million and nearly N8 billion.
He is also accused of approving payment vouchers without the required cash-back arrangements, resulting in estimated losses of about $7.47 million and N1.89 billion in tax revenue.
The EFCC said it traced over N1.4 billion and four landed properties to Yisawu, assets investigators claim he could not adequately explain. The properties have also been placed under interim forfeiture pending prosecution.
Sources within the investigation revealed that the recovered N9.4 billion and $21.2 million have already been deposited into the EFCC’s recovery accounts, while an additional $2.32 million was recovered through the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).
Investigators also disclosed that a separate case involving alleged revenue fraud valued at $28.39 million and N665 million has been established against the management of the Port Harcourt Refining Company, with recovery efforts currently underway.
The EFCC said investigations are continuing and hinted that additional recoveries, arrests and prosecutions are expected as more evidence emerges.
Nigeria’s four state-owned refineries—the two Port Harcourt refineries with a combined installed capacity of 210,000 barrels per day, the Kaduna Refinery with 110,000 barrels per day, and the Warri Refinery with 125,000 barrels per day—have a combined capacity of 445,000 barrels per day.
However, despite repeated rehabilitation programmes spanning several administrations, the facilities have remained largely non-functional.
The Warri Refinery briefly resumed operations in December 2024 before shutting down about a month later over safety concerns, while the Port Harcourt Refinery was taken offline in May 2025 for scheduled maintenance.
In October 2025, the NNPCL announced a comprehensive technical and commercial review of the three refineries to improve operational efficiency and profitability.
More recently, the company signed a Memorandum of Understanding with two Chinese firms—Sanjiang Chemical Company Limited and Xinganchen (Fuzhou) Industrial Park Operation and Management Co., Ltd.—to support the completion, operation and possible expansion of the Port Harcourt and Warri refineries, although details of the agreement have yet to be made public.
Efforts to obtain reactions from the NNPCL and the officials named in the investigation were unsuccessful as of the time this report was filed.
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