By Gift Chapi Odekina
The House of Representatives yesterday unraveled how oil companies export crude for refined petroleum products from Nigeria yet, fail to account for the bye products
At the resumed hearing of the house’ special ad hoc committee on petroleum products subsidy regime in Nigeria from 2017 to 2021, the lawmakers were shocked upon discovery that operating companies don’t account for bye products
The lawmakers lamented that despite the cost of the bye products which they noted is higher than crude itself, oil companies were shortchanging Nigeria bye failing to give account of what becomes of the products
The head, business development of Hyde Energy, an oil company, Abdulwahab Useni who appeared before the committee stood his grounds as he refused to disclosed to the lawmakers how the company makes its profit from crude export and import of refined products
Despite pressure from members of the committee, the Useni who stood in for the managing director of the company, also refused to explain to the lawmakers what happens to the profit of the crude bye products.
This compelled a lawmaker, Isiaka Ibrahim to call for a closed door investigation when invitees fail to make open, relevant information concerning financial transactions
As a measures towards ascertaining both the export and import value of crude and refined products, the committee members sought to know from Hyde Energy, the countries it exports its crude to.
This, the lawmakers stated will enable the committee to write to embassies of the countries in question to uncover details of such transactions
