Nigeria, Aug. 28 -- Nigeria's excess crude account (ECA) stood at $535,823.39 as of August, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, has said.

The minister disclosed this on Thursday at the National Economic Council (NEC) meeting chaired by Vice-President Kashim Shettima.

The ECA was created in 2004 by the administration of President Olusegun Obasanjo as a savings buffer for oil revenues above the budgeted benchmark price. Over the years, successive governments have drawn from the account to stabilise the economy during oil price shocks, fund infrastructure projects and meet pressing fiscal needs.

Once holding billions of dollars, the balance has steadily declined in recent years due to frequent with...