The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) says at least 200,000 barrels per day of crude oil is lost to oil theft and vandalism.
The Group Managing Director of NNPC, Mele Kyari spoke on Wednesday while meeting the Chief of Defence Staff, Maj.-Gen. Leo Irabor, according to a statement by the corporation.
The NNPC GMD commended the security agencies for their support and called for more protection for NNPC’s operational assets and personnel.
He disclosed that though petroleum products theft on the System 2B Pipeline has reduced considerably due to support from the security agencies, the nation was still losing about 200,000 barrels of crude oil daily to theft and vandalism.
“We have two sets of losses, one coming from our products and the other coming from crude oil. In terms of crude losses, it is still going on. On the average, we are losing 200,000 barrels of crude every day,” Mallam Kyari stated.
Experts described the loss as a quantum leap compared to the industry average of 70,000 b/d of crude output lost to theft as of August 2020.
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Meanwhile, General Irabor has promised to galvanise the military to provide maximum security for the nation’s oil and gas assets.
The CDS gave the commitment during the meeting with Kyari, and his top management team at the Defence Headquarters in Abuja.
He commended Kyari for initiating the engagement, saying: “I am delighted that you made this effort, and I tell you that the Armed Forces of Nigeria will collaborate with you to protect NNPC’s assets”.
General Irabor, who acknowledged the significant role of the oil and gas sector to the economy, said there was a need for collaboration between the NNPC and the Armed Forces to protect oil and gas facilities which he described as critical national assets.
“It is my intention to cooperate maximally with you and to give necessary instructions to all officers in the Armed Forces given that our existence, economically, rests almost solely on the NNPC, and to that extent, we must do everything possible to give you everything that you require,” the CDS stated.
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