The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has recovered N38.66 billion linked to the alleged diversion of refinery rehabilitation funds, as investigations widen to include former and serving officials of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL).
The recoveries comprise N9.4 billion in cash, $21.2 million—valued at about N29.26 billion using the Central Bank of Nigeria’s official exchange rate of N1,380 to the dollar—and several landed properties allegedly linked to suspects under investigation.
The investigation centres on approximately $2.79 billion released between 2021 and 2023 for the rehabilitation and turnaround maintenance of the Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna refineries.
According to investigators, the probe is among the largest corruption investigations ever undertaken in Nigeria’s petroleum sector.
The EFCC is investigating allegations of criminal conspiracy, breach of trust, diversion of public funds, economic sabotage, abuse of office, procurement fraud and money laundering involving officials of the NNPCL, its subsidiary, NNPC Engineering and Technical Company Limited (NETCO), former and serving managing directors of the three refineries, and major contractors, including Daewoo Engineering Nigeria Limited and Tecnimont SPA.
The Federal Government approved contracts worth about $2.79 billion for the rehabilitation programme, comprising approximately $1.56 billion for the Port Harcourt Refining Company, $740.7 million for the Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company, and $492.3 million for the Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company.
However, investigators said there is little evidence that the massive expenditure translated into meaningful improvements in refinery operations, raising suspicions that substantial portions of the funds were diverted, misappropriated or fraudulently disbursed.
The findings have renewed concerns over repeated government spending on refinery rehabilitation despite years of poor operational performance.
As part of the investigation, the EFCC has interrogated more than 30 senior NNPCL officials alongside over 50 officials of contracting firms and subcontractors connected with the projects.Investigators reviewed procurement records, project execution reports, payment approvals, banking transactions and company ownership documents, while also obtaining information from the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and several commercial banks.
According to sources familiar with the probe, investigators uncovered widespread irregularities, including alleged breaches of procurement procedures, questionable payment approvals and manipulation of contract processes involving officials across different levels of management.
The commission had earlier arrested several senior NNPCL officials over the investigation, including former Chief Financial Officer Umar Isa, Warri Refinery Managing Director Tunde Bakare, and former Port Harcourt Refinery Managing Directors Ahmed Adamu Dikko and Ibrahim Onoja.
Investigators accused former Port Harcourt Refinery Managing Director Ahmed Dikko of approving direct payments to contractors from provisional sum funds in violation of contractual provisions that required such payments to pass through Tecnimont.
The EFCC said it traced assets worth N983.9 million, $227,030 and three landed properties to Dikko, which investigators alleged he could not satisfactorily explain. An interim forfeiture order has reportedly been secured over the properties, while criminal charges are being prepared.
Another senior official, Jimoh Yisawu, who was linked to the Warri Refinery rehabilitation project, 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 financial safeguards, allegedly resulting in losses estimated at about $7.47 million and N1.89 billion in tax revenue.
According to investigators, more than N1.4 billion and four landed properties were traced to Yisawu. The assets have also been placed under interim forfeiture pending prosecution.
Sources disclosed that the recovered N9.4 billion and $21.2 million have been paid into the EFCC’s recovery accounts, while an additional $2.32 million was recovered through the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).
The commission has also reportedly established a separate case involving an alleged revenue fraud valued at $28.39 million and N665 million against the management of the Port Harcourt Refining Company, with recovery efforts continuing.
Officials familiar with the investigation said further recoveries, arrests and prosecutions are expected as investigators continue to analyse financial records and gather additional evidence.
The investigation has once again placed Nigeria’s refinery rehabilitation programme under scrutiny after billions of dollars were spent on facilities that have remained largely non-functional for decades.
Nigeria’s four government-owned refineries—the two Port Harcourt plants 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 installed capacity of 445,000 barrels daily.
Despite repeated rehabilitation projects, refinery operations have continued to fall far below installed capacity. The Warri Refinery, which resumed operations in December 2024, was shut 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 aimed at improving operational efficiency and profitability. More recently, the company disclosed that it had signed a Memorandum of Understanding with 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.
Efforts to obtain responses from the NNPCL and the officials named in the investigation were unsuccessful as of the time of filing this report. Their reactions will be included when received.