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 Cross River projected for re-listing as an oil-producing state.
The submission, made on Feb. 13, 2026, to RMAFC Chairman, Mohammed Bello Shehu, concludes the 2017–2025 nationwide verification of crude oil and gas coordinates across the federation.
The six-month exercise, conducted between August 2025 and February 2026, involved extensive field verification, hydrographic validation and reconciliation of state
submissions, culminating in final coordinate plotting at RMAFC headquarters from Jan. 24 to 31, 2026.
Shehu described the assignment as rigorous and nationally significant, noting that more than 1,000 crude oil and gas coordinates were physically verified across multiple states to ensure transparency and accuracy in revenue attribution.
The 14-member committee comprised representatives of RMAFC, the National Boundary Commission, Office of the Surveyor-General of the Federation, Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, Nigerian Hydrographic Agency and other relevant agencies.
According to sources, more than 12 states were visited, including Akwa Ibom State, Rivers State, Bayelsa State, Delta State, Edo State, Ondo State, Imo State, Anambra State and Abia State.
Several longstanding boundary overlaps were resolved through shared attributions, including Rivers–Akwa Ibom, Delta–Edo, Delta–Ondo, Imo–Rivers, Imo–Anambra and Akwa Ibom–Cross River.
For Cross River, projections indicate more than 100 producing oil wells from verified onshore and offshore reservoir coordinates, particularly from OML 114 within its maritime territory.
However, the 2012 judgment of the Supreme Court of Nigeria is expected to retain 76 oil wells in Akwa Ibom pending further judicial clarification.
An Abuja-based fiscal expert said the exercise distinguished administrative attribution from geological reality, adding that Cross River emerged strongly based on empirical reservoir data.
The RMAFC chairman is expected to seek presidential assent from Bola Ahmed Tinubu for implementation of the Inter-Agency Technical Committee recommendations.
Upon approval, the commission’s board will convene to adopt an operational framework for updating Nigeria’s official list of oil-producing states.
Stakeholders in Cross River described the development as a restoration of economic justice and constitutional equity for the state.
