The Nigerian National Petroleum Limited (NNPCL) said in a written statement that operations were carried out against crude oil theft in the country’s oil region, the Niger Delta, in the last week.
During this period, 211 cases of crude oil theft were recorded, the statement said, adding that 83 illegal refineries and 15 illegal pipelines were destroyed during the operations.
In the statement, 60 boats, vehicles and crude oil were seized during the operations.
Nigerian senator Ned Nwoko had announced more than $3 billion in losses in 2023 due to increased oil theft and attacks on pipelines in the country.
The army reported that 233 illegal oil refineries were destroyed last year as part of the fight against oil theft and sabotage in the country.
37 billion barrels of oil reserves
Nigeria’s identified oil reserves amount to about 37 billion barrels, accounting for 3.1 percent of the world’s reserves.
Nigeria, which is among the top 15 countries in the world in crude oil production, is the 8th country with the largest oil reserves in the world and ranks 6th in terms of oil exports.
In the oil-rich Delta region, armed groups have been sabotaging oil fields, clashes and kidnappings have been taking place.
