The Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited said it uncovered 55 illegal refineries and 29 illegal pipeline connections in one week across the Niger Delta region.
In a video documentary on the official YouTube channel of the NNPCL, the company said it recorded a total of 179 incidents of oil theft in the region.
The operations, which took place between January 11 to 17, 2025, led to the arrest of 30 suspects and the discovery of various illegal oil installations
“An industry-wide security collaboration to safeguard hydrocarbon infrastructure continues to yield remarkable results,” the broadcast says.
It listed the the various companies and stakeholders involved in the joint efforts to eradicate crude oil theft including:
- NNPCL command and control Centres
- Shell Petroleum Development Company
- Pipeline Infrastructure Nigeria Limited
- Maton Engineering Nigeria Limited
- OANDO PLC,
- Nigeria Liquified Natural Gas
- Tantita Security Services
- Government Security Agencies
In a breakdown of the 179 incidents in the Niger Delta region, it was noted that five incidents were recorded in the Western corridor, 90 in the Central Corridor, 70 in the Eastern corridor, and 14 in the Deep Blue water.
NNPC lists hotspots of oil theft
The national oil company also made a list of hotspots of crude oil theft in the Niger Delta region.
They include:
- Buguma Southeast, Bile, Okoloma, and Kaotan channel in Rivers state.
- Obuzor and Ukwa in Abia state
It also noted that crude oil theft is rampant in parts of Bayelsa state, where it intercepted some suspects and seized proceeds of the crime.
The joint security efforts led to the discovery of illegal pipeline connections in Bayelsa and Abia states
“Security personnel dismantled illegal refineries churning out black market petroleum products,” NNPCL noted.
It also uncovered hidden storage sites used for illegal oil operations in areas such as Buguma Southeast, Okoloma, Obrikom, and Ayama in Rivers, and Ozaukwu in Abia.
“A condensate pipeline at Nwaduloke community of Rivers State and damaged wellhead in Buguma in Rivers were among incidents of oil spills reported.
“Security men intercepted and seized vehicles laden with crude oil in Rivers, Bayelsa, and Abia.
“On the waterways, wooden fiber boats packed with crude oil were confiscated at Asa and Bile in Rivers.”
The company emphasized that the fight against crude oil theft will continue “until the menace is eradicated for good.”
What you should know
- Nigeria loses billions of dollars to crude oil theft daily, frustrating the country’s daily oil production output.
- The illicit activities also lead to oil spills that pollute rivers and farms, threatening the livelihood of farmers and fishermen.
- Nairametrics reported that Nigeria recorded over 589 oil spills in 2024, most of which were caused by oil theft
