NNPC tackles product theft
As Nigeria ranks first in oil smuggling Loses $1.5bn monthly to illegal oil schemes
Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) is collaborating with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Department of State Services (DSS), Nigeria Police Force (NPF), Nigeria Customs...
Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) is collaborating with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Department of State Services (DSS), Nigeria Police Force (NPF), Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and other relevant downstream and upstream stakeholders in the petroleum industry to curb the twin menace of petroleum products smuggling and crude oil theft which are negatively impacting the nation’s economy.
Group managing director of the NNPC, Mele Kyari said at a recent stakeholders meeting that, the move was at the instance of President Muhammadu Buhari who mandated the ministry of petroleum resources, the NNPC, the EFCC and all other security agencies to do everything to stop crude oil theft and illicit truck-out of petroleum products which he described as major economic crimes that have hindered Nigerians from enjoying the benefit of subsidized petroleum products.
Nigeria ranks first on the list of countries worldwide affected by oil smuggling. It is estimated that the country loses $1.5 billion monthly through illegal oil schemes. This is despite government efforts to curb the illicit trade.
In 2019, nation’s oil industry auditor, the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) released a report showing that the OPEC member lost around 138,000 barrels of crude oil to theft over the past 10 years valued at $40.06 billion.
Kyari urged all industry stakeholders to collaborate with the corporation to ensure that the daily national petroleum products consumption that shot up to 102 million litres in the month of May was brought down to realistic levels around 60 million litres.
He stressed that it was obvious to all that the citizens alone did not consume that volume of premium motor spirit (PMS). Daily, loads of outboard engine boats and trucks ferry Nigerian oil along its largely unmanned waterways and porous borders across to the nation’s neighbours.
According to Kyari, it is commonly agreed that smuggling is not a business that should be condoned because, even for deregulated petroleum products; it brings extra cost burden on this country both in terms of safety and security of supply and in securing of foreign exchange. “It even constitutes more burden to this country when the product involved is a regulated product like Premium Motor Spirit (PMS),” he submitted.
He explained that with the increasing price of crude oil at the global market and the OPEC+ production cuts, the country cannot afford to shoulder the cost of smuggling. “We all know that our daily consumption is not up to 60million litres. We all know that, and that is why we have to pull it down. We will pull it down by every means necessary,” Kyari assured.
He said NNPC would emplace advanced cargo declaration in line with global best practices to tackle the issue of crude oil theft in the country.
Executive chairman of EFCC, Abdulrasheed Bawa expressed the readiness of the commission to work with the NNPC to ensure that all those involved in the economic sabotage were brought to book.
Present at the stakeholders’ meeting include Major Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN), Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria (DAPMAN), Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Nigerian Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO), Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD), and others. They also expressed readiness to partner the NNPC to bring an end to petroleum products smuggling.