The Revenue Mobilization, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) has formally received the final report of the Federal Government’s Inter-Agency Committee on Nigeria’s oil-producing states, with projections indicating that Cross River State may soon be re-listed as an oil-producing state.
The report, submitted on Feb. 13, 2026, to RMAFC Chairman, Mohammed Bello Shehu, marks the conclusion of a nationwide verification of crude oil and gas coordinates conducted between 2017 and 2025.
The six-month intensive phase of the exercise, carried out from August 2025 to February 2026, involved extensive field verification, hydrographic validation, and reconciliation of submissions by states. Final coordinate plotting was completed at the commission’s headquarters in Abuja between Jan. 24 and 31, 2026.
Shehu described the assignment as rigorous and nationally significant, revealing that more than 1,000 crude oil and gas coordinates were physically verified across multiple states to guarantee transparency and accuracy in revenue attribution.
The 14-member inter-agency committee included representatives from RMAFC, the National Boundary Commission, the Office of the Surveyor-General of the Federation, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, the Nigerian Hydrographic Agency, and other key institutions.
Sources familiar with the process disclosed that over 12 states were visited during the verification, including Akwa Ibom, Rivers, Bayelsa, Delta, Edo, Ondo, Imo, Anambra and Abia states.
Several long-standing inter-state boundary overlaps were resolved through shared attributions. These included disputes between Rivers–Akwa Ibom, Delta–Edo, Delta–Ondo, Imo–Rivers, Imo–Anambra and Akwa Ibom–Cross River.
For Cross River, projections from the report indicate the presence of more than 100 producing oil wells from verified onshore and offshore reservoir coordinates, particularly within Oil Mining Lease (OML) 114 located in its maritime territory.
However, the 2012 judgment of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, which retained 76 oil wells in favour of Akwa Ibom State, is expected to remain binding pending further judicial clarification.
An Abuja-based fiscal expert said the exercise distinguished administrative attribution from geological reality, noting that Cross River’s emergence was anchored on empirical reservoir data rather than political considerations.
The RMAFC chairman is expected to seek presidential assent from Bola Ahmed Tinubu for the implementation of the committee’s recommendations.
READ ALSO: Alleged Illegitimacy Sparks Family Feud Over Ojei Estate in Delta State
Senate Probes NIHSA Budget Performance, Urges Adequate Funding for Water Resources Management
Upon approval, the commission’s board is expected to adopt an operational framework to update Nigeria’s official list of oil-producing states.
Stakeholders in Cross River have described the development as a restoration of economic justice and constitutional equity, expressing optimism that the re-listing will significantly boost the state’s revenue profile and development prospects.
About The Author
