Navy disrupts oil theft, recovers 1.2m litres in Rivers

ABUJA: The Nigerian Navy has intensified its crackdown on crude oil theft in Rivers State, recovering over 1.2 million litres of stolen and illegally refined petroleum products.

This was contained in a statement by the Director of Naval Information, Navy Capt. Abiodun Folorunsho, in Abuja on Thursday.

Folorunsho said the operation, conducted under Operation Delta Sentinel, was aimed at dismantling oil theft networks and protecting Nigeria’s economic assets.

According to him, personnel of the Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) Pathfinder uncovered a major illegal refining site at Umoku in Ndoni area of Rivers State, where about 708,000 litres of illegally refined petroleum products, including Automotive Gas Oil and Dual Purpose Kerosene, were discovered, alongside 310,000 litres of suspected stolen crude oil.

He said the products were valued at over ₦1.06 billion for refined products and about ₦288 million for crude oil.
“The site had numerous dugout pits and locally fabricated refining ovens used for processing stolen crude oil.

The products were handled in line with extant procedures, while the perpetrators fled on sighting the patrol team,” he said.

Folorunsho also disclosed that troops of Forward Operating Base (FOB) Bonny, supported by naval air assets, uncovered multiple illegal crude oil storage sites in Allison Community, Bonny Local Government Area, where about 231,000 litres of suspected stolen crude oil valued at over ₦215 million were recovered.

He added that the products were concealed in dugout pits and connected to waterways through improvised distribution systems.

According to him, the operations build on earlier successes recorded between January and March, during which over 457,000 litres of stolen petroleum products valued at more than ₦600 million were recovered.

He also noted maritime interdictions involving the arrest of three vessels — MT MKpodu, MT Westaf and MT Stelios K — carrying over 900 metric tonnes of suspected stolen crude oil, translating to about 1.04 million litres valued at over ₦967 million.

“This convergence of inland disruption and maritime interdiction emphasises a deliberate multi-domain operational strategy aimed at dismantling the entire crude oil theft value chain and protecting the nation’s oil and gas assets,” he said.

Folorunsho said the Chief of the Naval Staff, Idi Abbas, had approved a 90-day extension of Operation Delta Sentinel to sustain operational momentum, adding that the extension would ensure continued pressure on economic saboteurs.