The Federal Government’s Inter-Agency Committee on Oil-Producing States has submitted its final report to the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC), projecting Cross River State to be officially reinstated as an oil-producing state.

The report, handed to RMAFC Chairman Mohammed Shehu on Friday, February 13, 2026, followed a six-month nationwide verification exercise covering crude oil and gas coordinates from 2017 to 2025.

Comprehensive Verification Confirms Oil Assets

According to a statement released to PUNCH Online, the committee, made up of representatives from RMAFC, National Boundary Commission (NBC), Office of the Surveyor-General of the Federation (OSGoF), Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Nigerian Hydrographic Agency, and security agencies, conducted an extensive review of onshore and offshore oil and gas reservoirs.

Over six months, the team visited more than 12 states, including Akwa Ibom, Rivers, Bayelsa, Delta, Edo, Ondo, Imo, Anambra, Abia, and Cross River, verifying over 1,000 new crude oil and gas coordinates.

The findings show that most oil-producing states stand to gain from new oil well attributions, while longstanding boundary disputes were resolved, including:

Rivers–Akwa Ibom

Delta–Edo

Delta–Ondo

Imo–Rivers

Imo–Anambra

Akwa Ibom–Cross River

Cross River Positioned to Reclaim Oil-Producing Status

For Cross River, the report projects the state will regain oil-producing status, supported by over 100 verified oil wells, particularly from OML 114 in its maritime territory.

“For the first time since 2008, Cross River is projected to be officially enlisted again as an oil-producing state, vindicating years of advocacy and scientific revalidation,” the statement said.

Although 245 surface coordinates were submitted by Cross River, a 2012 Supreme Court ruling is expected to retain 76 wells in Akwa Ibom State pending further judicial interpretation. Even so, sources confirmed that Cross River’s geological evidence is compelling, empirical, and beyond reasonable doubt.

A fiscal expert in Abuja noted:

“The exercise separates administrative attribution from geological reality, and Cross River emerges strongly from that distinction.”

Historical Context and Next Steps

Cross River had previously benefited from a 2024 report attributing 67 wells from OML 114, but implementation did not follow. The 2025 verification, enhanced with hydrographic and reservoir data, proved decisive in the current review.

RMAFC Chairman Shehu is now awaiting President Bola Tinubu’s assent to implement the technical committee’s recommendations. Once approved, the RMAFC Board of Commissioners will convene a plenary session to finalize the operational framework for updating Nigeria’s official list of oil-producing states.

Stakeholders hailed the move as not only administrative recognition for Cross River but also a restoration of economic justice, constitutional equity, and historical truth.