Army troops arrest 15 suspected oil thieves, destroy 32 illegal refineries in Niger Delta 

The announcement was made by the spokesperson of the 6 Division of the Nigerian Army in Port Harcourt, Lt.-Col. Danjuma Danjuma, in a statement on Monday.

Danjuma disclosed that 32 illegal artisanal refineries were destroyed and 14 boats seized in operations carried out by troops between January 6 and 12 in Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Delta, and Rivers states.

He further disclosed that the troops confiscated about 60,000 litres of various petroleum products.

 “We also deactivated ten illegal refineries, several crude oil cooking pots, and receivers, and recovered about 19,000 litres of stolen petroleum products along the Imo River.

“In Odagwa, Etche, our troops intercepted three boats carrying about 12,000 litres of stolen crude oil and arrested three suspects in the process.

“Similar operations were carried out in Abiama, Asa, Obuzor, Okoloma, Ozaa, Ukwa, and Oyigbo” he added.

“In Baberegbene, Southern Ijaw, Bayelsa, our soldiers dismantled an illegal artisanal refinery and intercepted a wooden boat carrying no fewer than 1,500 litres of stolen crude oil.

“Similarly, an illegal refining site containing an unquantified quantity of stolen petroleum products was deactivated in Emago-Kugbo and Oluasiri communities in Nembe, Bayelsa,” the Army spokesperson said.

On their operations in Akwa Ibom and Delta, Danjuma said, “troops maintained a strong presence and effectively denied economic saboteurs the liberty to operate.” 

Oil theft and pipeline vandalism in the Niger Delta region are stifling growth in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector, costing the country billions of dollars of revenue.

However, the menace of crude oil theft is being tackled by various operations including the Nigerian Army, the Navy, and private security companies contracted by the Federal government.

President Bola Tinubu has pledged to increase Nigeria’s crude oil above the current average of 1.5 million barrels per day to above 2.5 million bpd. Winning the war against oil theft is crucial to achieving this target.