Securing Nigeria’s Oil Wealth: CBN Reshuffles Export Inspection Agents in Push for Greater Transparency
Securing Nigeria’s Oil Wealth: CBN Reshuffles Export Inspection Agents in Push for Greater Transparency
By Matthew Eloyi
Nigeria’s petroleum industry is entering another phase of regulatory adjustment as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) moves to strengthen oversight of crude oil and gas exports through a revamped pre-shipment inspection and monitoring framework. At the heart of the initiative is a renewed effort to ensure that every barrel of crude oil and every unit of gas leaving the country’s export terminals is properly measured, documented and accounted for.
The CBN’s appointment of eight pre-shipment inspection agents and two monitoring and evaluation companies represents more than a routine administrative exercise. It is part of a broader institutional effort to address longstanding concerns surrounding the transparency, accuracy and accountability of Nigeria’s petroleum export trade, particularly at a time when oil and gas remain critical to the country’s foreign exchange earnings and fiscal stability.
Effective October 2, 2026, the new appointments introduce a revised allocation of export terminals among the inspection companies under the Nigerian Export Supervision Scheme (NESS). The details were communicated in a circular dated October 29, 2026, with reference number TED/FEM/FPC/PUB/001/005, signed by Aderinola Shonekan, Director of the CBN’s Trade and Exchange Department.
Issued pursuant to the Pre-shipment Inspection of Imports Act No. 10 of 1996, the circular was addressed to authorised dealer banks, the Nigeria Customs Service, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC), the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, terminal operators, oil and gas companies and other stakeholders.
The directive requires all relevant institutions and industry operators to comply with the revised arrangements, which redistribute responsibility for inspecting petroleum export cargoes across Nigeria’s various terminals.
Under the new structure, Dakee Engineering and Construction Ltd will oversee LNG, Escravos (Gas), Bonny River Terminal (BRT) and EGTL, while Trexem Energy Services Ltd has been assigned Egina, Qua Iboe and Tulja terminals.
Geoscape Ltd will cover Escravos, ERHA, Odudu and FSO Cawthorne, while 617 Ltd is responsible for Bonga, Brass, Usan and Eagle.
Robinson International Energy Ltd will handle Ugo-Cha, Penington, Aje, Ima, Oyo and Nembe. Trobell International Nigeria Ltd has been assigned Forcados, Bonny and Okwori.
Integrated Shipping Services Nigeria Ltd will oversee Akpo, Antan, Okoro, Anyala-Madu and Ebok, while Kephren Business Ltd will cover Ukpokiti, Utapate, Yoho, Abo, Agbami, Ajapa, Okono, Okwok and additional marginal streams designated by the NUPRC.
Beyond the redistribution of terminals, perhaps the most significant feature of the new arrangement is the reinforcement of independent monitoring and evaluation. Rather than allowing the inspection companies to operate without a separate supervisory layer, the CBN has appointed two companies to monitor their activities and assess compliance with the established requirements.
Q&Q Control Services Ltd will monitor the activities of 617 Ltd, Trexem Energy Services Ltd, Geoscape Ltd and Kephren Business Ltd. Arlington Securitas Nigeria Ltd will supervise Dakee Engineering and Construction Ltd, Trobell International Nigeria Ltd, Robinson International Energy Ltd and Integrated Shipping Services Nigeria Ltd.
This creates a two-tier supervisory arrangement in which the eight inspection agents undertake direct cargo inspection, while the two monitoring companies provide an additional layer of scrutiny over their operations.
The distinction is important because the credibility of Nigeria’s petroleum export accounting system depends not only on the accuracy of inspection activities but also on the effectiveness of the mechanisms designed to verify those activities.
Why petroleum export inspection matters
For an economy heavily dependent on petroleum exports, the importance of accurately measuring and documenting crude oil and gas shipments cannot be overstated.
Pre-shipment inspection is designed to establish the quantity and quality of petroleum cargoes before they leave Nigerian export terminals. It generates critical information that helps authorities verify export declarations, reconcile transactions and establish the value of products shipped to international markets.
In practical terms, the process helps answer a fundamental question: how much petroleum has Nigeria actually exported, and how much revenue should the country receive from it?
The answer has significant implications for national revenue, foreign exchange inflows and economic planning.
Where discrepancies occur between declared and actual export volumes, the consequences can extend beyond inaccurate documentation. They can undermine government revenue, complicate the reconciliation of export proceeds and weaken confidence in the country’s petroleum trade reporting system.
This makes independent inspection and verification particularly important in an industry where the volumes involved translate into substantial financial values.
The introduction of dedicated monitoring and evaluation companies is therefore intended to strengthen the integrity of the process. By independently assessing the performance of inspection agents, the arrangement provides an additional opportunity to identify operational weaknesses, enforce compliance and ensure that inspection responsibilities are discharged according to regulatory expectations.
In effect, the CBN is seeking to make the inspection process more accountable by ensuring that those responsible for verifying export cargoes are themselves subject to oversight.
Building on previous reforms
The latest appointments are not an isolated intervention but part of a continuing series of adjustments to the Nigerian Export Supervision Scheme.
In May 2024, the CBN appointed 11 companies under the framework, comprising nine pre-shipment inspection agents and two monitoring and evaluation firms. Dakee Engineering and Construction Ltd and Arlington Securitas Nigeria Ltd were among the companies appointed during that exercise.
The allocation of export terminals was subsequently reviewed in March 2025, reflecting the need to periodically adjust the operational structure of the scheme.
In July 2026, the CBN further appointed Candid Oil Services Ltd as an inspection agent for the Taurus Oil and Gas Depot.
The October 2026 circular represents another significant adjustment, with particular emphasis on the redistribution of export terminals and the organisation of monitoring responsibilities among the appointed firms.
Taken together, these successive changes demonstrate the evolving nature of the supervisory framework and the CBN’s continuing involvement in strengthening the institutional processes surrounding Nigeria’s export trade.
The bigger picture: Protecting Nigeria’s foreign exchange earnings
The timing of the latest intervention is particularly significant given the growing contribution of petroleum exports to Nigeria’s external trade performance.
According to CBN data, Nigeria recorded a merchandise trade surplus of $16.1 billion in the first half of 2026, nearly double the corresponding performance in the preceding period. The improvement was driven largely by stronger crude oil earnings, increased exports of refined petroleum products and declining imports.
Oil and gas exports remained the dominant contributor to the country’s export receipts, increasing by 30 per cent quarter-on-quarter to almost $17 billion and accounting for 84.5 per cent of total merchandise exports.
The performance reflected improvements in crude oil production alongside higher international oil prices, reinforcing the strategic importance of petroleum to Nigeria’s external sector.
These figures also underscore why the country cannot afford weaknesses in the measurement, documentation and monitoring of its petroleum exports. When oil and gas account for such a substantial proportion of export earnings, even small discrepancies in cargo measurements or export documentation can have significant financial implications.
Beyond the immediate question of revenue collection, reliable export data are essential for economic forecasting, foreign exchange management and the formulation of sound fiscal and monetary policies.
For the CBN, therefore, strengthening petroleum export supervision is closely connected to its broader responsibility of supporting a more transparent and accountable foreign exchange system.
Ultimately, the success of the revised NESS arrangement will depend not simply on the appointment of inspection and monitoring companies but on their ability to deliver credible, independent and verifiable results.
The redistribution of terminals, coupled with the introduction of a separate monitoring layer, provides an institutional framework for improving oversight. However, its real value will be measured by the accuracy of export records, the effectiveness of compliance monitoring and the extent to which discrepancies are identified and addressed.
For a country seeking to maximise the economic benefits of its natural resources, accounting for every barrel of crude oil and every unit of exported gas is not merely a regulatory obligation. It is a fundamental requirement of responsible resource management.
The CBN’s latest intervention is therefore a reminder that safeguarding Nigeria’s petroleum wealth begins long before export proceeds enter the country’s financial system. It begins at the terminals, where every shipment must be properly inspected, measured, documented and independently verified.
