The $20 Billion Oil Mystery: How Missing Funds Rocked Nigeria’s Economy

The alleged missing $20 billion oil revenue in Nigeria, as reported by Lamido Sanusi, then-Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), sparked a significant controversy.

In late 2013,Lamido Sanusi, as CBN Governor, writes a confidential letter to President Goodluck Jonathan, claiming that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) failed to remit tens of billions of dollars in oil revenues owed to the state.

Sanusi's allegations were based on his analysis of NNPC's operations between January 2012 and July 2013. He claimed that:

• NNPC made $67 billion worth of oil sales in the 19 months preceding his letter.

• Of this amount, between $10.8 billion and $20 billion was unaccounted for.

• The missing funds were allegedly diverted through three key mechanisms:

  • Non-competitive contracts awarded to companies that subcontracted the work

  • Swap deals involving 200,000 barrels of crude oil per day

  • Unclear transactions related to oil subsidies