While opposition parties have questioned Public Protector Lawrence Mushwana's report on the "Oilgate" scandal and pledged to take up the issue with the National Prosecuting Authority, the ANC says it accepts his findings.

In his report released on Friday, Mushwana found no evidence of wrongdoing in the "scandal" involving an alleged R11 million payment by black empowerment company Imvume to the African National Congress before last year's general election.

Commenting afterwards, ANC spokesman Smuts Ngonyama said his party had noted, and accepted, Mushwana's findings.

"Because of other legal processes relating this matter, the ANC will not comment further at this stage," he said.

However, Democratic Alliance Chief Whip Douglas Gibson said R11 million "worth of public money cannot simply disappear into ANC coffers, via an ANC front company without somebody being called to account".

"If the public protector cannot or will not act, we have every confidence that the NPA will investigate the matter properly and institute prosecutions if these are justified."

In his report, Mushwana had exonerated Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka and made a series of sweeping findings, not always backed up by the facts, and in some cases without seeking the evidence which was available, Gibson contended.

The DA would next week present a dossier outlining all available evidence surrounding the scandal, along with a series of key questions, to the NPA, with a request to investigate the matter.

"On the face of the evidence available it is quite apparent that only after a full forensic or public investigation will the true nature of the relationship between Imvume Management, PetroSA and the ANC be fully understood," Gibson said.

The Freedom Front Plus, which made the original request to Mushwana to investigate the matter, said it too would approach the NPA.

The NPA had earlier indicated it could not investigate before the public protector's probe was completed, FF Plus MP and minerals and energy spokesman Willie Spies said.

"The situation has, however, now changed. The law is a double edged sword. If PetroSA did not do anything wrong by making a non-owed payment to Imvume Management, then Imvume most certainly acted incorrectly by convincing PetroSA under false pretences to make the payment.

"The FF Plus will therefore immediately be requesting the National Prosecuting Authority to re-open the issue for investigation," Spies said.

Speaking in Pretoria at the release of his report, Mushwana said the ANC and Imvume were not public entities, did not perform public functions, and were not part of any level of government.

"The state has no shareholding in Imvume," Mushwana said, reading from the report.

"The alleged payment was clearly made by one private entity to another and could therefore not have had any bearing on state affairs."

Mushwana said on the available evidence he had not seen any offence and, although the NPA was an independent body, if he had to recommend to them to open a case he would have nothing to show them.

The sum of R11 million is alleged to have been from an advance payment of R15 million Imvume had received from PetroSA to procure oil from supplier Glencore, which Imvume allegedly never supplied.

It has been alleged that Mlambo-Ngcuka (during her term as minister of minerals and energy) improperly influenced PetroSA's decision to make the advance payment to Imvume.

Mushwana's report states such allegations made against Mlambo-Ngcuka are not substantiated and without merit.

He recommended the board of PetroSA in consultation with the CEO, and its legal advisors take urgent steps to ensure that the outstanding amount due to PetroSA by Imvume, is recovered without delay.

With acknowledgement to Sapa.