The Defence Headquarters on Friday said troops in the South-South region recovered stolen crude oil and other related products valued at N2.6 billion.
According to the DHQ, a total of 3,282,250 litres of stolen crude oil, 224,050 litres of illegally refined AGO, and 5,925 litres of DPK were recovered between January 27 and February 16.
In addition, 131 dug-out pits, 67 illegal refining sites, and 125 storage tanks were discovered and destroyed, while a total of 104 suspected oil thieves were apprehended.
This was contained in a statement by the Director, Defence Media Operations, Maj. Gen. Edward Buba.
The statement reads: “In the SS, troops denied the oil theft of the estimated sum of N2.6bn. Troops also arrested 104 perpetrators of oil theft.
“Troops in the Niger Delta area discovered and destroyed 131 dugout pits, 70 boats, 125 storage tanks, 12 motorcycles, two tricycles and 12 vehicles.
:Other items recovered included 43 cooking ovens, 12 pump machines, 6 speedboats, one outboard engine, and 67 illegal refining sites. Troops recovered 3,282,250 litres of stolen crude oil, 224,050 litres of illegally refined AGO, and 5,925 litres of DPK.”
The country is currently grappling with a significant issue of oil theft, causing substantial adverse impacts on economic growth, business opportunities, and the profit margins of oil companies.
According to the Executive Secretary, Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, Ogbonnaya Orji, more than N4.3tn worth of crude oil was stolen in 7,143 pipeline vandalism cases within five years.
