Nigeria’s central bank has named Candid Oil Services Limited as the country’s pre-shipment inspection agent for crude and other petroleum exports. The decision was communicated in a notice dated July 1, 2026, issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Director of the Trade and Exchange Department, Aderinola Shonekan.
The Central Bank said that, although Candid Oil Services will carry out the pre-shipment inspection role, Taurus Oil and Gas Depot has been assigned as its designated terminal. The apex bank added that the appointment follows the framework set out in the PIA Act 1996.
In the notice, the central bank said the new arrangement is meant to inform all market participants involved in the export process, including authorized dealer banks, the Nigerian Customs Service, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited, and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority. It also referenced terminal operators, oil and gas firms, and the general public.
The statement read: “This is to notify all authorized dealer banks, the Nigerian Customs Service, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited, the 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, in line with the provisions of the PIA Act, 1996.”
