The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) has announced a major victory in the fight against oil theft. The NNPC said its private security contractor, Tantita Security Services, intercepted and destroyed a vessel carrying 800,000 litres of stolen crude oil on July 7, 2023.
The vessel, MT TURA II, was owned by a Nigerian company, Holab Maritime Services Limited. It was heading to Cameroon with the illegal cargo when it was caught at an offshore location near Ondo State. The captain and crew members were arrested and handed over to the authorities.
The NNPC said the vessel had been operating in stealth mode for the last 12 years. The last reported location of the vessel was Tin Can Port in July 2011. The NNPC said it had no valid documentation for the vessel or the crude oil on board.
The NNPC said it decided to destroy the vessel to send a strong warning and deterrent to all those involved in such criminal activities. The NNPC said oil theft not only causes huge economic losses to Nigeria and legitimate stakeholders in the oil industry, but also fuels corruption, environmental damage, and social instability.
The NNPC also said it discovered 64 illegal crude oil connections and destroyed 77 illegal refineries in the Niger Delta in the past week. The NNPC said Nigeria lost about $41.9 billion to oil theft between 2009 and 2018.
Oil theft has been a persistent problem in Nigeria, especially in the Niger Delta region. According to a report by the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), Nigeria lost 619.7 million barrels of oil valued at N16.25 trillion ($46.16 billion) to crude stealing between 2009 and 2020.
Oil theft has also resulted in significant revenue losses for the Federal Government. The leader of the Niger Delta Volunteer Force (NDVF), Alhaji Mujahid Dokubu-Asari, alleged that over 99 per cent of oil theft in the country was carried out by top military personnel, a claim that was denied by the military.
