Cross River State on the Verge of Regaining Oil-Producing Status – RMAFC

The Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) has received the final report of a federal government inter-agency committee, which indicates that Cross River State is set to be re-listed as an oil-producing state.

The report was submitted to the RMAFC Chairman, Mr. Mohammed Shehu, on Friday in Abuja by members of the 14-man technical committee.

According to a statement released on Sunday, the recommendation follows a comprehensive six-month verification exercise conducted between August 2025 and February 2026. The team scrutinised crude oil and gas coordinates across the nation, covering data from 2017 to 2025.

The inter-agency committee comprised representatives from RMAFC, the National Boundary Commission (NBC), the Office of the Surveyor-General of the Federation (OSGoF), the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), and security agencies, among others. Their mandate was to scientifically determine the precise locations of oil and gas assets within Nigeria’s onshore and offshore territories.

During the exercise, the team visited over 12 states, including Akwa Ibom, Rivers, Bayelsa, Delta, Edo, Ondo, Imo, Anambra, Abia, and Cross River. The statement revealed that they verified more than 1,000 new crude oil and gas coordinates based on confirmed reservoir data.

The findings suggest that most oil-producing states will gain from new oil well attributions. The report also noted that several long-standing boundary disputes, such as those between Rivers and Akwa Ibom, Delta and Edo, and Imo and Anambra, were resolved based on technical evidence.

Breakthrough for Cross River

The report’s technical projections indicate that Cross River is now in a strong position to regain its status as an oil-producing state, a designation it lost in 2008. Sources indicate that over 100 producing oil wells from verified onshore and offshore coordinates particularly from Oil Mining Lease (OML) 114 within its maritime area have been attributed to the state.

While Cross River submitted over 245 surface coordinates, the report acknowledged the implications of a 2012 Supreme Court judgment, which is expected to see 76 oil wells remain in neighbouring Akwa Ibom State pending further judicial interpretation.

Despite this, sources close to the process described the geological evidence for Cross River as compelling. “The science speaks for itself. The reservoirs do not lie,” one official was quoted as saying.

The report also recalls that a previous inter-agency report in May 2024 had attributed 67 wells from OML 114 to Cross River, though that decision was not implemented. The 2025 verification, which included more robust hydrographic and reservoir data, has strengthened the case for the state.

Next Steps

RMAFC Chairman Mohammed Shehu is awaiting President Bola Tinubu’s approval to begin implementing the committee’s recommendations. Following presidential assent, the RMAFC Board of Commissioners will meet to approve the framework for the new attributions and update the official list of oil-producing states.

Stakeholders have described the development as a restoration of economic justice for Cross River.