- Oil and gas royalty collections skyrocketed by 87.6% in February 2026, reaching N471.27bn compared to N251.18bn in January.
- The N220.09bn increase occurred despite a marginal dip in crude oil production, proving that centralized collection is successfully reclaiming lost revenue.
- Implementation of Executive Order 9, which mandates a unified revenue collection framework under the Nigeria Revenue Service, is credited with eliminating historical discrepancies and leakages.
Nigeria’s fiscal reforms are yielding immediate dividends as the country recorded one of its most significant month-on-month increases in oil royalty inflows.
Eko Hot Blog reports that according to recent Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) data, February collections surged to N471.27bn an 88% jump, marking a decisive victory for the Federal Government’s revenue assurance strategy.
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The most striking aspect of this surge is that it defies the traditional logic of the industry.
Typically, royalty inflows track production volumes; however, Nigeria’s average daily crude production actually dropped from 1.43 million barrels per day in January to 1.41 million in February.
This contrast suggests that for years, the primary constraint on Nigeria’s oil wealth wasn’t just low output, but weak oversight and systemic leakages.
The primary catalyst for this windfall is Executive Order 9 (EO9).
Before its implementation, royalty payments were often fragmented across multiple agencies, leading to delays and opaque accounting.
By centralizing collection under a unified framework coordinated by the Nigeria Revenue Service, the government has streamlined tracking and reconciliation processes.
Industry analysts note that tighter monitoring of production volumes and better pricing benchmarks have replaced the previous “leaky” system.
Beyond royalties, upstream petroleum taxes also performed strongly, with Petroleum Profit Tax and Company Income Tax contributing to a total FIRS-related revenue haul of over N1.14tn for the period.
While the early results are promising, experts caution that strict enforcement remains critical.
The success of EO9 is vital as Nigeria faces mounting fiscal pressures and debt obligations.
By maximizing earnings from existing production levels, the government is creating a more stable foundation even before long-term goals for increased crude output are realized.
As the three tiers of government share this increased revenue, the focus now shifts to whether this momentum can be sustained through the rest of the year.
If successful, EO9 could serve as a blueprint for similar reforms across other high-revenue sectors of the Nigerian economy.
