National Assembly backs pipeline surveillance, dismisses petitions

The National Assembly Joint Committee on Petroleum Resources has passed a vote of confidence in Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) over efforts to secure oil pipelines and curb crude theft.

The lawmakers also dismissed three petitions challenging the surveillance contract after petitioners failed to appear before the committee.

The resolutions followed a one-day parliamentary roundtable on pipeline security and crude oil theft held on Wednesday.

Chairman of the House Committee on Petroleum Resources (Midstream), Henry Okojie, said the arrangement has strengthened infrastructure protection and improved production.

Nigeria’s crude oil output has risen to about 1.8 million barrels per day as of April 2026, up from about 900,000 barrels per day in 2022 before the contract was introduced.

Speaker of the House, Abbas Tajudeen, said global developments have reinforced the need to secure oil assets.

He said: “Despite the ongoing tensions in the Middle East and the protracted conflict involving Russia and Ukraine, the need for valiant efforts at finding alternative energy sources has become necessary, adding that crude oil still remains the largest source of primary energy in the world, especially the transport sector where it still powers 95 per cent of all vehicles, planes and ships.

“The current crises, particularly with the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, have resulted in price surges and supply shortages, with consequential impact on the nation’s economic survival, saying ‘as a nation, we must rise to the challenge, and this roundtable is a clear indication that the National Assembly is ready to lead the way.”

Providing context, he traced the roots of pipeline security challenges to long-standing grievances in the Niger Delta.

He said: “The discovery of petroleum has both earned us massive foreign exchange and resulted in environmental degradation and despair.

“As a result, the Niger Delta has witnessed profound agitations over the years, which often resulted in pipeline vandalism, crude oil theft, and illegal refining activities.

“Desperate communities and weak enforcement structures created a climate of instability in the oil sector with staggering consequences.

“At some point, Nigeria was losing billions of dollars annually as between 10 to 30 per cent of crude oil production was lost to theft, undermining national revenue and questioning our capacity to remain a reliable oil producer.”

Tajudeen said the surveillance framework involving private operators and host communities has improved output and reduced losses.

He said: “The synergy of private surveillance providers, security agencies, and community engagement led to remarkable improvements in our daily production quotas.

“Recent reports indicate that most of the illegal tapping points have been dismantled, production levels have improved significantly, and oil receipts are approaching near-total delivery to export terminals, compared to the alarming losses of previous years when production sometimes plummeted to about 700 barrels per day.

“Today, largely due to these surveillance/security efforts, we have been able to ramp up production to about 1.8 million barrels per day.

“Importantly, the surveillance contract has been able to create direct employment for thousands of Niger Delta youths who were formerly agitators, providing a legitimate alternative to crime, and placing security back in the hands of the people who host the facilities.”

He, however, noted that crude oil theft persists in some areas and called for improved accountability and transparency.

The Speaker added that the legislature has strengthened legal provisions under the Petroleum Industry Act to tackle sabotage and improve oversight.

Tantita was engaged by the Federal Government in 2022 to address declining production linked to oil theft, using a community-based surveillance model involving youths in host communities.