Despite significant financial losses incurred by the nation, the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC), Mr. Mele Kyari, intensified efforts to combat oil theft by earnestly requesting the Nigerian military’s continued support in combating crude oil theft and pipeline vandalism.

Mr. Kyari emphasized the importance of escalating the fight against this menace, highlighting the positive impact it has had on the nation’s crude oil production growth.

In a statement issued by the Chief Corporate Communications Officer of the national oil company, Olufemi Soneye, it was reported that Mr. Kyari made this appeal during a meeting with the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Christopher Musa, who, accompanied by senior military officers, paid a visit to the NNPC Towers in Abuja.

Regrettably, Nigeria incurs substantial financial losses annually due to oil theft and pipeline vandalism, hindering its ability to meet its Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) quota for several years.

The statistics regarding the daily volume and monetary value of oil theft in Nigeria are inconsistent; however, in October of the previous year, the Nigerian Senate disclosed that the nation had incurred losses amounting to N2.3 trillion due to crude oil theft as of that time in 2023.

In April of this year, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Abbas Tajudeen, indicated that Nigeria suffers an annual loss of N1.29 trillion attributable to oil theft, pipeline vandalism, and other criminal activities.

He specifically noted that approximately 300,000 barrels of crude oil are stolen each day, calling upon the military to take decisive action.

Prior to this, in August 2023, the National Security Adviser, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, reported that Nigeria continued to lose around 400,000 barrels of crude oil daily to both domestic and international thieves, despite ongoing efforts to combat this issue.

 

 

“I personally call for enhanced and sustained security engagement. This is because we have reached a new peak in production that we haven’t seen in the last three years.

“This is clearly related to the sustained efforts by the armed forces and other security agencies to protect our critical assets, particularly the pipeline infrastructure in specified areas where we are working closely with these agencies. We are already seeing the results transforming into increased production,” Kyari stated yesterday.

The most recent data from OPEC for July 2024 reveals that Nigeria has increased its oil production by 30,000 barrels per day, reaching a total of 1.307 million barrels per day, as reported in the Monthly Oil Market Report (MOMR).

It is important to note that OPEC's production figures typically do not account for condensates, which represent a substantial portion of Nigeria's overall oil output.

When considering the July figures released by the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), which includes condensates in its calculations, Nigeria's total hydrocarbon production amounted to 1.533 million barrels per day last month, marking the third highest level recorded this year.

In January, Nigeria's combined production stood at 1.64 million barrels per day; in February, it was 1.539 million barrels per day; March saw a production of 1.43 million barrels per day; April's output was 1.44 million barrels per day; May recorded 1.46 million barrels per day; June's production was 1.50 million barrels per day; and July's output was 1.533 million barrels per day.

Furthermore, Kyari praised the defense chief and his team for their dedication to safeguarding the nation's vital hydrocarbon resources, particularly in the Niger Delta region, over the past few months. He underscored that these accomplishments are not only significant for Nigeria but also for the global energy sector.

Kyari expressed his belief that Musa and his team will successfully fulfill the presidential directive to address security challenges impacting the country's crude oil production.

“Components of this effort that depend on security are being effectively managed by you. Your coordinated and focused response is paving the way for improved security engagement, particularly in the Niger Delta,” Kyari said.

In his opening remarks, Musa stated that the purpose of the visit was to introduce the monitoring team to the NNPC. The team will be responsible for liaising with the company and other stakeholders in the oil-producing regions to ensure the security of the nation’s critical hydrocarbon infrastructure.

The CDS pledged the military's commitment to improving security and the performance of its troops. He emphasized the need to sustain the ongoing operations and analyze the troops’ capabilities to enhance their performance and productivity.

The CDS stressed the importance of ramping up production for a prosperous economy. He reassured the audience of the military’s collaboration with intelligence agencies, private security, state governments, and host communities to enhance overall performance.

“Working in silos won’t give us the best results. I want to assure you that we will collaborate with the necessary stakeholders to achieve our set targets as mandated by Mr. President,” he stressed.

The NNPC has announced a reduction of its investment in the Dangote Petroleum Refinery to 7.2 percent, attributing this decision to a strategic shift towards Compressed Natural Gas (CNG).

Soneye, the spokesperson for NNPC, made this statement during a call-in segment on the Brekete Family programme, a well-known radio show in Abuja. In September 2021, NNPC had acquired a 20 percent stake in the Dangote refinery for $2.76 billion.

However, on July 14, Aliko Dangote, the chairman of the 650,000 barrels per day refinery, disclosed that the NNPC had decreased its ownership to 7.2 percent.

Despite this reduction, the NNPC spokesperson emphasized that the organization has no intention of undermining the refinery, given its equity stake in the $19 billion enterprise.

“The reason for reducing our stake in Dangote refinery is because we wanted to invest in CNG. We observed that CNG is very cheap and all over the world, people are investing in clean and cheaper alternative energy,” Soneye said in pidgin.

In his professional opinion, the adoption of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) by Nigerian citizens would result in significant cost savings. It is important to note that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) does not have regulatory authority over downstream activities and therefore has no concerns regarding the facility situated in Lagos.

However, the sole challenge lies in the supply of crude oil, which the NNPC has been unable to fully meet due to the prevalence of oil theft. In light of this, he earnestly encourages Nigerian citizens to actively participate in the collective effort to eradicate this detrimental practice.

“That is why the NNPC is building different CNG stations everywhere. We understand that with N10,000, Nigerians can fill their cars and use it for two weeks. We realised that gas is cheaper in Nigeria, why don’t we invest in it since this is what people are doing all over the world?” Soneye asked.

He added: “We want all Nigerians to know that the NNPC does not have any issue with the Dangote Refinery. We are part of the owners of the Dangote Refinery and we don’t want it to collapse.

“We invested billions of naira into the Dangote refinery. As of today, we have a 7.2 per cent stake in the refinery. So, why would we want to sabotage such a company?