The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, has clarified that the Muhammadu Buhari-led government did not make any provision for petroleum subsidy in the 2023 budget.

The Group Executive Officer of the NNPCL, Mele Kyari, disclosed this on Thursday in a meeting with the Senator Abdullahi Adamu-led APC National Working Committee, NWC, at the party’s National Secretariat, in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital.

He stated emphatically that : “There was subsidy in 2022 but in 2023, not a single naira was provided for the purpose of financing the subsidy. He said.

He went on to explain that: “And ultimately while we held back our fiscal obligations, we still have a net balance of over N2.8 trillion that the federation should have given back to the NNPC.

“For any company, when you have negative N2.8 trillion, there is no company in the whole of Africa that will lend to you, you cannot have receivables.

“The provision of subsidy is there, but absolutely there is no funding for it,” Kyari said.

“If we continue, we will run into defaults and the defaults of NNPC is the default of Nigeria.

“Once NNPC goes into defaults and liquidity, it affects every borrowing done by the country, even the sub-nationals. Your lenders will come back to you and say your country cannot longer pay,” he said.

On how to cushion the effects of the already suspended subsidy on petrol, he assured that the President Bola Tinubu-led administration is working to introduce some palliatives which will be put in place soon.

He, again, emphasised the heavy amount of money being paid on subsidy is no longer affordable and sustainable hence the need to bring it to a complete halt.

“Of course it is very obvious that we can no longer afford it. Subsidy bills have piled up, the country is not able to settle NNPC for the money we are spending on subsidy.

“And therefore, pricing petroleum at the market is the right thing to do at this point in time and I believe that this would benefit the country in the long time,” he said.