Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd (NNPCL) has reported a staggering 400 incidents of crude oil theft in just one week, highlighting the pervasive issue of oil theft in the Niger Delta region.
Gatekeepers News reports that these incidents include illegal refineries, connections, vandalism, oil spills, storage locations, and other criminal activities, according to the company’s weekly program, “Energy and You”.
The breakdown of the incidents is alarming, with 165 illegal refineries, 69 illegal connections, 15 cases of vandalism, 8 oil spills, 19 illegal storage locations, and 74 vessel AIS infractions.
These incidents were reported by various companies and security agencies, including Tantitta Security Ltd, Pipeline Infrastructure Nigeria Limited (PINL), SPDC, NNPC Command and Control Centre, Maton Engineering, and government security agencies.
The Western region of Rivers and Bayelsa states was the most affected, with 265 incidents, followed by the deep blue waters off the coast of the Niger Delta, which recorded 74 incidents. The Eastern region saw 65 incidents, while the Western Niger Delta had 26 cases, mainly in Delta state.
The report also revealed that eight suspects were arrested by security agencies and stakeholders in the oil and gas industry during the period under review.
The rampant crude oil theft in the Niger Delta has resulted in the destruction of the region’s natural ecosystem, low revenues to the federal government, and divestment from onshore fields by international oil companies.
Nigeria has consistently failed to meet its OPEC+ oil production quota of 1.5 million barrels daily, with crude oil production falling to 1.25 million bpd in May, according to OPEC.
The decline in oil production and investment in the country’s oil and gas sector is attributed to the insecurity and theft in the Niger Delta.
Oil majors like Exxon, Shell, and TotalEnergies have divested from the region, with Shell selling its onshore business in Nigeria for $1.3 billion to the Rennaissance consortium earlier this year.
