- Statistical data showed that pipeline vandalism and oil theft/bunkering caused a severe socio-economic crisis in Nigeria.
- The collaborative efforts of various security entities increased oil production to 1.51million barrels daily in the first quarter of 2023.
The Senate disclosed yesterday that Nigeria had lost N2.3 trillion to crude oil theft this year. Owing to this, the Senate ordered a thorough investigation into the actions of security forces and militia groups using sophisticated methods to steal crude oil in the country. This followed a motion during plenary by Senator Ned Nwoko (Delta North).
The lawmaker noted that available statistical data showed that pipeline vandalism and oil bunkering caused severe socio-economic crisis in Nigeria. Nwoko alleged that some bad eggs within the security agencies conspired with unscrupulous figures within the industry to bunker oil. He said this undermined the efforts of the Joint Task Force of the Nigerian military. In addition, it undermines the collaboration of other security entities to combat the menace.
Nwoko added, “The current collaborative efforts involving the Joint Task Force of the Nigerian military, operations like Operation Delta Safe and Operation Dakartada Barawo, along with the contributions of various security entities, state and local governments, and International Oil Companies (IOCs) in the Niger Delta region have yielded positive results. These efforts have increased oil production, reaching 1.51 million barrels daily in the first quarter of 2023.
“This figure marks an improvement from the 1.49 million barrels per day recorded in the same quarter of 2022. It is notably higher than the production volume of 1.34 million barrels per day in the fourth quarter of 2022. Despite the efforts of certain military personnel and security agencies like the Nigeria Security and Civil Defense Corps (NSCDC) and Department of State Services (DSS) in combating oil theft in the Niger Delta region, there are individuals within these institutions who engage in illicit activities.”