By Abubakar Yunus
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) says the federal government has appointed Candid Oil Services Limited as the pre-shipment inspection agent (PIA) for the Taurus Oil and Gas Depot.
The appointment was announced in a circular dated July 1, 2026, and signed by Aderinola Shonekan, director of the CBN’s trade and exchange department.
The apex bank said the appointment covers oil exports from the terminal and aligns with the provisions of the Pre-Shipment Inspection of Exports Act, 1996.
“This is to notify all Authorised Dealer Banks, Nigeria Customs Service, Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited, Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, All Terminal Operators, All Oil and Gas Companies and the General Public that the Federal Government has appointed the company listed below to operate as a Pre-shipment Inspection Agent (PIA) for Oil Export,” the circular reads.
The CBN asked all relevant stakeholders to take note of the appointment and ensure compliance.
Pre-shipment inspection agents are responsible for verifying the quality, quantity and value of crude oil and gas cargoes before export to ensure accurate documentation and curb revenue leakages in Nigeria’s petroleum exports.
The latest appointment comes weeks after the CBN allocated the Cawthorne and Okwok crude oil terminals to Swede Control Intertek Limited as part of the federal government’s ongoing deployment of pre-shipment inspection agents.
The government had earlier reviewed the allocation of oil export terminals to PIAs in March 2025, assigning additional terminals to the nine inspection agents appointed under the scheme.
