$3.27 billion in crude was stolen in 14 months, the FG laments

By revealing that around $3.27 billion worth of oil had been lost to theft and

damage in the previous 14 months, the Federal Government yesterday expressed concern over the escalating rate of crude oil theft in the Niger Delta.

This occurred on the same day that the Defense Headquarters reported that 49 illegal refineries had been destroyed and 70 oil thieves and pipeline vandals had been apprehended in the Niger Delta.

The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, NUPRC, stated in a presentation at a stakeholders' engagement yesterday in Abuja that the government is particularly concerned about the significant loss of oil income to vandals.

Mainly from Bonny, Brass, and Forcados

 Gbenga Komolafe, the Chief Executive of NUPRC for Forcados, who made this disclosure, claimed that Bonny Terminal Network, Forcados Terminal Network, and Brass Terminal Network were largely responsible for the crude oil losses.

He stressed that because of the high degree of theft, the country had not been able to reach its OPEC production quota because of economic constraints, insufficient security, poor surveillance, poor community interactions, exposed facilities, and stakeholders' compromises.

According to Komolafe, the administration is committed to putting an end to the problem so that the nation can take advantage of the growing price of oil and safeguard the environment from oil spills.