Crude Oil sale accounts for about 80 per cent of Nigeria’s revenues and the country’s oil and gas sector is bedevilled by monumental corruption. It’s important that journalists who want to hold government accountable pay attention to developments in the sector: how much revenue government is making, the transparency or otherwise of the oil block bid round, crude oil lifting, Joint Venture partnerships between the NNPC and multinationals, who is getting what contracts, among others. You need to pay attention to the resources below.
1) NIGERIA NATIONAL PETROLEUM CORPORATION
The Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation is state-owned oil and gas company managing Nigeria’s hydrocarbon resources for the benefit of all Nigerians and other stakeholders. To make a success of any reporting on Nigeria’s oil and gas sector, you just must pay attention to what the NNPC is doing. Although the corporation is not as transparent as it should be, it provides some important information on its website that reporters do not care to check out.
For instance, if you go here, you find what the corporations refers to as the NNPC Monthly and Quarterly Petroleum Information. These provide you detailed information about crude oil production, sales and exports.There is also the annual statistical bulletin which tells you a lot of things NNPC officials won’t tell you in interviews.
For guidelines on marketing Nigerian crude oil, go here. This is important so you are able to determine whenever these guidelines are violated.
2) DEPARTMENT OF PETROLEUM RESOURCES
The Department of Petroleum Resources is the technical arm of the Ministry of Petroleum which conducts oil bid rounds and awards licenses and permits to operators in the oil and gas industry. It makes important industry announcements here, list key industry legislations here and spells out guidelines for permits and licenses here.
3) SHELL OIL SPILL DATA
Royal Dutch Shell maintains a database of oil spill incidents from its facilities here.
4) MARINE TRAFFIC
This platform is handy in case you want to track ships carrying crude or refined products in and out of Nigeria. For instance, in case you want to check ships that recently arrive or depart the port in Lagos, go here.
5) NATIONAL EXTRACTIVE INDUSTRY TRANSPARENCY INITIATIVE
The Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) is mandated by law to promote transparency and accountability in the management of Nigeria’s oil, gas and mining revenues. A major component of the on-going anti-corruption reform in Nigeria, it is the national version of the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), which is a global movement aimed at ensuring that extractive resources aid sustainable development.
This is definitely a great resource for investigative journalists because NEITI conducts detailed and reliable audits on revenues from Nigeria’s oil and gas sector, solid minerals and fiscal allocation and statutory disbursements to agencies managing these resources on behalf of the country.
For detailed audit reports go here and here and here.
6) ORGANIZATION OF PETROLEUM EXPORTING COUNTRIES
Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries was formed in 1960 to coordinate and unify the petroleum policies of its Member Countries and ensure the stabilization of oil markets in order to secure an efficient, economic and regular supply of petroleum to consumers, a steady income to producers and a fair return on capital for those investing in the petroleum industry.
Nigeria is an important member of this organisation [which it joined in 1971] and a lot of facts, data and information about Nigeria’s oil exploration and exports are contained here. For instance find a snapshot about Nigeria here . You can find details about Nigeria’s (and other countries’) crude oil reserves here and production allocation here. Then, there is this annual statistical analysis which gives you a rich menu of data that can trigger a number of investigations.
7) U.S. ENERGY INFORMATION ADMINISTRATION
The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) collects, analyzes, and disseminates independent and impartial energy information to promote sound policymaking, efficient markets, and public understanding of energy and its interaction with the economy and the environment.
This is the Nigerian page of the site and it contains quite a lot of interesting information about Nigeria’s crude oil and its importation to the United States. Find full report about Nigeria here and revenue fact sheet here, information officials are reluctant to disclose in Nigeria.
8) INDEX MUNDI
Index Mundi, home of the Internet’s most complete country profiles. This site contains detailed country statistics, charts, and maps compiled from multiple sources. This link leads you Nigeria’s oil export and this to the country’s oil import.
9) NIGERIAN NAVY CRUDE OIL THEFT PLATFORM
Crude oil theft has become a huge problem in Nigeria and the Nigerian NavyCOT is a platform that seeks to documents the incidents. For instance, find link to the list of arrested and cleared vessels between January and April 2013 here. Also find crude oil tanker schedule here. Also available is list of illegal refineries destroyed by the navy.
10) CRUDE OIL THEFT IN NIGERIA
Oil Theft in Nigeria is a whistleblower website that provides a platform for the public to report incidents of oil thief in real time. You can visit here for reported incidents of oil theft, vandalised pipeline, illegal bunkering, illegal refinery and oil spill. It’s a platform that depends largely on crowdsourcing and it might provide tips from time to time for investigations.
11) MBENDI
MBendi Information Services (Pty) Ltd is a privately owned Internet business publishing company founded in 1995 and based in Cape Town, South Africa. The company uses the Internet to support business and political decision makers worldwide. It provides information about Nigeria’s oil and gas industry here.
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