A destroyed refinery By Favour Ifeoluwa & Akinola Ajibade The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited( NNPCL) says it has destroyed 134 illegal refineries in the last few weeks. Also, the company said 63 illegal pipeline connections were uncovered during the the weeks . The corporation, In a visual report, stated that at about 2 am on Sunday, a joint team of security agents discovered a large wooden boat illicitly loading stolen crude oil from Barge AGS01 within the OML 18 operating area, noted intelligence report a large wooden wooden boat was caught receiving crude oil from the barge. According to the state-owned oil firm, while the barge was towed away with a tugboat in custody, five speedboats used in towing the large wooden boat to the illegal loading site were also detained and the particulars of the tugboats and barge used for the operation were reportedly seized for further investigation. It further said that two large boats, which involve
By Favour Ifeoluwa & Akinola Ajibade
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has in the last two years, deactivated a total of 6,465 illegal refineries, its Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO), Mele Kyari, has said. The period is between 2022 to 2024..
He stated this yesterday ( Wednesday) during an oversight visit by the House of Representatives Special Committee on Oil Theft, to the headquarters of NNPCL in Abuja.
Kyari, who decried the menace of oil theft, said no country surrenders the protection of such critical assets, which are our source of income, to non-state actors.
He said, “It is very obvious that despite all the integrity issues with our pipeline and our facilities, we have capacity beyond 2 million barrels per day without doing anything.
“But today, we are struggling to meet the budget estimate of 1.6 million barrels per day. This by no means is related to crude oil theft; no, it’s not true, but the core issue that is affecting the other core issue is crude theft.No one will produce oil, knowing fully well that he cannot dispose of it, and that’s why no one is putting money into it.
In 2022, it became so obvious that if something dramatic is not done, we are going to run into trouble. On a specific date, our production came down to as low as 1.1 million barrels per day.
And on a particular date, we have gone below a million barrels to explain this except for the infraction and especially the oil thieft. “
The Chairman of the Special Committee, Alhassan Ado-Doguwa, while speaking during the visit, said it is disheartening that infractions on oil facilities do not stop with the pipelines. He noted that there are also breaches at the oil well heads, flow stations, loading, and export terminals, among others.
“We are compiling the facts and figures. Instances where approvals are hastily granted to vessels involved in crude theft just to cover official complicity are reported. Incidences of undeclared liftings are noted, and all these and several other infractions, particularly in our offshore marine environment, contribute to the huge volume of crude oil theft being reported,” Doguwa stated.
Prior to his appearance before the House, Kyari has revealed progress made by Tanita Security outfit, a private security company owned by Government Ekpemupolo, popularly called Tompolo, on oil theft including efforts also made by Nigerian Navy and other security agencies in tackling the menace.
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