BAYELSA, Nigeria – The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, has announced the discovery of 162 illegal pipeline connections and refineries predominantly in Bayelsa, a state in the Niger Delta, as it intensifies its fight against crude oil theft in the country.
According to a documentary shared on Wednesday, July 26, 2023, via the oil company’s social media handle, NNPCL said 93 illicit pipeline connections and 69 unlawful refineries, discovered between July 15, 2023, and July 21, 2023, in the Aboa and Gbokoda areas, had been dismantled.
WAR ON CRUDE OIL THEFT
93 illegal pipeline connections discovered and 69 illegal refineries destroyed in the Niger Delta in the past week.
Tune in today for more on our weekly TV show, #EnergyAndYou which airs at 8:30 PM on NTA Network and NTA International.#EnergyforToday… pic.twitter.com/nNJVgdtDhe
— NNPC Limited (@nnpclimited) July 25, 2023
“War on crude oil theft: 93 illegal pipeline connections discovered and 69 illegal refineries destroyed in the Niger Delta in the past week,” the company posted.
The documentary highlighted the extensive scale of crude oil theft currently rampant in the Niger Delta and informed viewers that repair work was ongoing.
The company credited its maritime intelligence system with the successful detection of these illegal activities.
“30 wooden boats used in carrying stolen crude oil were confiscated in the past week, with some in Gbokodo, and five cases of oil spill recorded in the deep blue waters,” NNPCL reported. The company pledged to continue its staunch fight against crude oil theft in the country.
Meanwhile, local tensions are escalating.
A militant group, the self-styled Creek Reform Warriors, threatened to resume attacks on major oil facilities in the region.
The group’s leader, General Igbokuro Tinowei, demanded the reinstatement of workers allegedly unjustly dismissed by the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited, SPDC, in 2019.
Tinowei claims the international oil company promised to recall the laid-off workers following the COVID-19 pandemic but has repeatedly defaulted.
He issued a two-week ultimatum to SPDC to reinstate these workers or face the severe consequences of brutal attacks.
As these internal upheavals intensify, NNPCL announced that the Federal Government is set to renegotiate Nigeria’s production quota in the ongoing OPEC+ cuts by November.
