The monstrous oil theft and security challenges in the Niger Delta area of the country has cost a huge loss if 470,000 barrels daily amounting to $700 million monthly, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has disclosed.
The Group General Manager, Crude Oil Marketing Department of NNPC, Rose Eshiet, said during a tour of the company’s facilities that the pipelines particularly at Bonny Terminal could not be operated as a result of the ongoing monstrous crime.
“lf you are producing 30,000 barrels a day every month, you get 1,940 barrels. So what it means is that you can take it to 270 every four days, calculate it in a month, you will have seven cargos on a million barrels and that is seven million barrels.
“When you multiply seven million barrels by $100, that is $700 million lost per month, add that about 150,000 barrels expected are differed, we are not producing due to security challenges,” she said.
According to Eshiet, the Shell Petroleum Company (SPDC) trunk line — TNP transnational pipeline — cannot be operated since March 3, 2022 thereby hindering serious oil production.
On the situation at Forcados, she said Forcados was not totally secure as a result of security challenges.
“But the company is addressing it and in two weeks it will be fixed.
“Brass which is operated by Agip and which produces about 100,000 barrels is also facing insecurity and vandalism.
“Illegal siphoning of crude oil from oil facilities by criminal individuals and groups has impacted negatively on revenue to all stakeholders,” the GGM explained.
On pipeline vandalism, Eshiet also said the quantity of oil being pumped into the federal oil terminals has been hampered by the vandals.
“The impact of vandal activities caused low crude oil production, interrupted gas supply, countrywide interruption of distribution of petroleum products, refineries’ downtimes, increasing instability in the oil and gas market, but I will tell you the major thing that affects us.
“Nigeria will suffer for it; the revenues are impacted, so we can only appeal to them to rein in themselves, the oil theft situation is regrettable.
” It is not going on across the whole of the Niger Delta, there are trunk lines that are more impacted and I think the Bonny trunk line ranks highest.
“Our major challenge as a country is our capability to respond and that is as a result of several factors, the terrain as well as some incapacity that we have,” she stressed.
On the deployment of technology in curbing the criminal activities in the oil creeds of Niger Delta, Eshiet said the Saudi Arabia digital control system will be adapted alongside the local technology.
“I was in the Saudi Arabia infrastructure twice, and I know what they have. It is a digital control system. it is different from our own. Digital control system is like you have the control system of all your assets in one place.
“This is beyond the digital control system; it’s also a security system and we are doing it and to tell you that this was built-in by our in-house software engineers because of the security sensitivities to it because they are customized.
“We use a combination of technology to integrate and synchronize and create what we are now confident and comfortable with,” the GGM said.
On the effort aimed at meeting the company’s financial tasks and maintaining industry data on crude and all NGS production and lifting, she said bulk supply of petroleum products to the nation was being maintained.
On his part, the Group General Manager, National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NAPMS), Mr Bala Wunti, said there is a synergy with other government agencies on the operations of the organization.
He explained: “The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, former DPR, and the regulatory commission issued what they call Bill of Quantity and also handle vessel clearance and export permits.
“The Federal Ministry of Trade and Industry handles the issuance of export permits.
We also relate with the Nigeria Customs Service which also helps with the export permit and to also clear all the vessels.
“The Central Bank of Nigeria processes all Nigerian export proceeds forms, Nigerian export supervision scheme.
“These are all the agencies we deal with; it is not an NNPC thing. We have to work through all these agencies before a ship can come in and sail.”
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