Business

Hope Rises For FG’s N26trn Budget As Oil Price Jumps To $81.11

Published

2 years ago

December 28, 2023

Editor

Barely a few days to the commencement of the 2024 fiscal year, hope appears rekindled in the revenue horizon as the price of Nigeria’s Bonny Light, rose to $81.11 per barrel, from $78 per barrel it closed last week, indicating an excess of $3.15 per barrel against the 2024 budget reference price of $77.96 per barrel.

The nation’s N26 trillion 2024 budget, benchmarked on $77.96 per barrel and 1.78 million barrels per day, bpd was threatened in the past two weeks when the oil price became unstable trending down to the budget benchmark price.

Price of Bonny Light rose to $81.11 per barrel on the Red Sea attacks that culminated in shipping disruptions, thus fuelling the speculation in favour of high prices.

However, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, NUPRC, indicated that oil output fell by 7.4 percent to 1.25 million barrels per day in the month of November 2023, compared to 1.35bpd in September 2023.

This means the pressure point has shifted to output level as this may undermine the realization of the targeted revenue if it persists into 2024.

But the newly appointed board and management team for the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd (NNPCL) has pledged to produce two million barrels of crude oil daily from 2024.

The Chairman of NNPCL, Pius Akinyelure, stated: “We have just concluded our inauguration ceremony by Mr President and we have assured him of our collective efforts to turn around the fortune of the Oil and Gas.

”And to make it a company that we will all be proud of and a company that will help sustain the economy and make sure we create some element of prosperity for Nigerians. He (President) has assured us of his support and on our own part too, we have given him our one 100 per cent assurance.

“We will do the best we can to make sure that the key performance in the oil and gas industry in Nigeria probably will become number one in Africa and probably compete with the leading oil and gas industry around the world.

“It is not an easy task but we know we had the challenge of oil stealing, vandalisation of our pipelines. Our commitment is to produce at the rate of two million barrels per day anytime from next year’’.

On his part, the Minister of State Petroleum Resources (Oil), Senator Heineken Lokpobiri, said that oil production in the country would surpass the 2024 budget target of 1.7 million barrels per day.

Business

JUST IN: CBN Removes Cash Deposit Limits, Raises Weekly Withdrawal To N500,000

Published

3 days ago

December 3, 2025

Editor

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has removed cash deposit limits and also increased the weekly cash withdrawal limit from N100,000 to N500,000.

The CBN made this known in a circular to all banks and other financial institutions, signed by Dr Rita Sike, Director, Financial Policy and Regulation Department.

Sike said that the revisions formed part of ongoing efforts to moderate the rising cost of cash management and address security concerns.

According to her, it will also curb money laundering risks associated with heavy reliance on cash.

She said that the cash-related policies previously issued in response to evolving circumstances were aimed at reducing cash usage and promoting the adoption of electronic payment channels.

“However, with time, the need to streamline and update these provisions to reflect present-day realities became necessary,” she said.

She said that with effect from Jan. 1, 2026, the cumulative deposit limit would be removed and the fee previously charged on excess deposits would no longer apply.

The director said that the cumulative weekly withdrawal limit across all channels has been reviewed to N500,000 for individuals and five million Naira for corporates.

“Withdrawals above these thresholds will attract excess withdrawal charges as specified,” she said. “The special monthly authorisation that allowed individuals to withdraw five million Naira and corporates N10 million once a month has been abolished.”

She said that for Automated Teller Machines (ATMs), daily withdrawal remains capped at N100,000 per customer, with a maximum of N500,000 weekly.

She said that this formed part of the overall weekly withdrawal limit applicable to all channels, including point-of-sale (POS) transactions.

Sike said that excess withdrawals above the stipulated limits would attract three per cent for individuals and five per cent for corporate customers.

According to her, this will be shared in the ratio of 40 per cent to the CBN and 60 per cent to the operating bank or financial institution.

She directed banks to load all currency denominations in ATMs, while the existing limit on over-the-counter encashment of third-party cheques remains pegged at N100,000.

Sike said that such withdrawals would be counted as part of the cumulative weekly limit.

The director said that banks were also required to render monthly returns to the relevant supervisory departments.

She listed the departments to include the Banking Supervision Department, Other Financial Institutions Supervision Department, and the Payments System Supervision Department.

Sike said that revenue-generating accounts of federal, state, and local governments were exempted from the new withdrawal rules.

She said that accounts of microfinance banks and primary mortgage banks held with commercial and non-interest banks are also exempted from the new rules.

She, however, said that the long-standing exemption previously enjoyed by embassies, diplomatic missions, and aid-donor agencies had been removed.

Business

Naira Records Depreciation Against US Dollar Across Official, Black Markets

Published

4 days ago

December 2, 2025

Editor

The naira depreciated against the dollar at the official and parallel foreign exchange markets on Monday to begin the new month on a bearish note.

Central Bank of Nigeria’s data showed that the Naira weakened to N1,448.44 on Monday, down from N1,446.74 traded on Friday last week.

This means that the naira dropped by N1.7 against the dollar on Monday when compared to Friday.

Similarly, at the black market, the Naira declined by N5 to N1,475 on Monday from N1,470 at the close of work last week.

The development comes as Nigeria’s foreign reserves stood at $44.61 billion as of November 27th, 2025.

Business

NNPCL Revenue, Profit Soar To N5.08tn, N447bn In October

Published

1 week ago

November 29, 2025

Editor

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited has announced a significant revenue increase to N5.078 trillion for October 2025.

The state-owned firm disclosed this in its monthly financial report released on Saturday.

According to the financial report, from N5.078 revenue in October, the company posted a N447 profit after tax.

The figure represents a significant 19.2 percent increase in revenue from N4.26 trillion and a 106 percent rise in PAT from N216 billion in September 2025.

The report stated that from January to September, NNPCL paid N11.150 trillion in statutory payments to the federation.

Four days ago, NNPCL posted a total of N45.1 trillion as total revenue for the 2024 financial year.