Oil theft: Nigeria Navy destroys 23 illegal refineries in October  

 

The Nigerian Navy, under the auspices of Operation DELTA SANITY, has successfully uncovered and destroyed 23 illegal refinery sites and recovered a large quantity of stolen crude oil in October.

This was disclosed in a statement by the Director of Naval Information, Commodore Aiwuyor Adams-Aliu, on Tuesday in Abuja.

Adams-Aliu said the team also uncovered and destroyed 30 ovens, 26 reservoirs, 77 sacks, 19 dugout pits, 21 wooden boats, four jerry cans, and two pumping machines.

According to him, large quantities of crude oil and AGO were successfully recovered during various operations carried out within the month.

What the Navy is Saying  

He said the results had contributed to the increase in Nigeria’s crude oil production.

According to him,  the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) recently announced that Nigeria’s crude oil production rose to 1.8mbd in the month of October.

“On Oct. 8, three illegal refinery sites, 15 ovens, 12 reservoirs, five dugout pits and two wooden boats laden with about 12,000 litres of stolen crude oil was discovered and destroyed around Bakana River, Bukuma axis and Ogaji-Ama of Rivers. 

“On Oct. 9, one suspect with one locally made pistol was arrested with three cases of ammunition. Also, three illegal refinery sites, as well as five reservoirs, two ovens, one dugout pit, and two wooden boats cumulatively laden with about 900 liters of product suspected to be stolen crude oil, were discovered around the Otuwo and Ogboinbiri general area of Bayelsa. 

“On Oct. 11, five illegal refinery sites with four ovens, three reservoirs and a few sacks laden with about 4,000 liters of stolen crude oil were discovered around Ugbokodo and Christian village in Warri South-West Local Government Area of Delta. 

“Also, a market boat laden with about 2,200 litres of illegally refined Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) in jerry cans and sacks was discovered at Idi-Ogba, Ondo State,” he said. 

What you should know 

• The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and the Ministry of Petroleum estimate that Nigeria loses between 200,000 and 400,000 barrels of crude oil daily due to theft.
• In a recent interview with Channels Television, NNPCL’s Group Chief Executive Officer, Mr Mele Kyari, disclosed that since the crackdown on illegal refineries began in 2022, 8,684 sites—described as “boiling points” rather than actual refineries—have been deactivated.
• He further revealed that 6,610 illegal pipeline connections were identified, with 5,913 of them successfully removed.
• However, Kyari highlighted that more than 1,000 illegal connections still exist, and new ones are reconnected daily, making the fight against oil theft increasingly challenging.