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Nigeria Lost N2.3tn Revenue To Oil Theft in 12 Months — IOC

Published

3 years ago

April 25, 2023

Nigeria has lost an opportunity to produce and sell about 65,700,000 barrels of oil in the last one year due to issues bothering on pipeline vandalism and the resultant oil theft.

This translates to about N2.3tn loss in oil revenue if the prevailing exchange rate and average oil price are used.

The Chairman of Shell Companies in Nigeria, Dr Osagie Okubor, said at the just concluded Nigerian International Energy Summit held in Abuja, said the 180, 000 barrels per day Trans Niger Pipeline had remained shut for more than one year- March 2022 to March 2023.

The loss from March last year to March this year brings total shut in/loss to about 65, 700, 000 barrels. Brent crude price averaged about $83 per barrel from March 2022 to March 2023, meaning the country could have lost as much as N2.3tr to the menace.

The TNP, a Joint Venture operated by SPDC is a major pipeline capable of transporting about 180,000 barrels of crude per day to the Bonny export terminal.

Speaking at the NIES, Okunbor said the TNP remained shut for one year due to the massive crude oil theft on the pipeline.

The pipeline, according to Shell, is part of the gas liquids evacuation infrastructure, critical for continued domestic power generation and liquefied gas exports.

He said, “What keeps me awake today as regards my onshore business in Shell is the fact that we cannot operate a pipeline, and that’s what is responsible for the 60 percent capacity. I think today that is almost just how much gas we can supply,” he said.

“And this is because one of our key gas infrastructures — the TNP — was shut down for one year; we removed 460 illegal connections on that line. We just reopened that line. Today we are struggling to catch up with our first programme.”

Okunbor said the loss was often viewed as affecting Nigeria’s oil production quota to the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries.

He stressed that the situation was also having devastating implications on the supply of gas to the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas.

“So, if you ask me what the number one issue has to be for the incoming administration, it has to be the security of oil and gas infrastructure. If you don’t fix it, then we have a huge problem on our hands,” Okunbor said.

Okunbor advised the incoming administration to prioritised the security of oil infrastructure.

There were reports that the Federal Government was planning to reopen the pipeline last October.

However, talks with the Bodo community in the Gokana Local Government Area of Rivers State appear to have collapsed.

Okunbor however said Nigeria was not short of frameworks and written documents on how to tackle the various challenges in the oil sector.

He noted that the decade of gas document, for example, included steps to deepen gas use, but implementation remained a challenge.

On his part, Managing Director of Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas Limited, Philip Mshelbila, pointed out that 40 per cent of globally renowned gas firms’ capacity had been lying fallow due to theft.

He added that the lack of power to execute the recommendations and policies in the various documents and laws of the oil sector remained a challenge to the industry.

Last year, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company said it detected an illegal connection on the Trans Escravos pipeline looped to the four-kilometre Afremo test line.
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News

JUST IN: Tinubu Decorates New Service Chiefs

Published

4 hours ago

October 30, 2025

Editor

President Bola Tinubu on Thursday decorated the new service chiefs with their respective ranks at the Council Chamber of the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

The ceremony, which began shortly after 2pm saw the President perform the decoration alongside Vice President Kashim Shettima and the spouses of the decorated officers, each dressed in their respective service uniforms.

Those decorated were General Olufemi Oluyede as the Chief of Defence Staff; Lieutenant-General Wahidi Shaibu as Chief of Army Staff; Air Marshal Kennedy Aneke as Chief of Air Staff; and Vice Admiral Idi Abbas and Chief of Naval Staff.

The Senate had, on Wednesday, confirmed the four nominees after a two-hour closed-door screening session where they were grilled on strategies to strengthen national security and improve coordination among the armed forces.

Tinubu had earlier written the red chamber, seeking an expedited confirmation process “to ensure continuity in the nation’s security leadership.”

It was observed that the ceremony was attended by senior government officials, lawmakers family members of the service chiefs and top officers from the various arms of the military.

The President, Vice President and the officers’ spouses took turns pinning the new ranks on each of the decorated chiefs.

The decoration came barely one week after the Presidency announced a sweeping reshuffle in the military hierarchy.

In the statement signed by the President’s Special Adviser on Media and Public Communication, Sunday Dare, it said the shake-up was part of efforts to inject new direction into the nation’s defence architecture.

The Chief of Defence Intelligence, Major General E. A. P. Undiendeye, retained his position.

Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, later told our correspondent that the changes were not connected to recent rumours of a coup plot, saying, “The President acted within his authority as Commander-in-Chief. Service chiefs can be hired and fired by the President.”

On Monday, Tinubu had met privately with the new service chiefs at the Villa.

They arrived in a black Mercedes-Benz Sprinter van escorted by a green Toyota Land Cruiser, and the session lasted about 40 minutes.

Presidency sources said the President charged them to take decisive action against insurgents and bandits, particularly in the North.

Last Friday’s reshuffle followed an October 19 report alleging that some officers were plotting to overthrow the government — a claim later dismissed by the Defence Headquarters as “false and mischievous.”

The Director of Defence Information, Brigadier-General Tukur Gusau, said the alleged arrests linked to a coup were “issues of indiscipline” within the ranks, describing the report as “intended to cause unnecessary tension and distrust among the populace.”

News

JUST IN: Eurozone Growth Beats Expectations In Third Quarter

Published

8 hours ago

October 30, 2025

Editor

The eurozone economy grew faster than expected in the third quarter of 2025, official data showed Thursday.

The EU’s data agency said the 20-country single currency area recorded growth of 0.2 per cent over the July-September period from the previous quarter.

The figure was higher than the 0.1 per cent forecast by analysts for Bloomberg and FactSet.

More details later…

News

PHOTOS: Police Inspector, Others Die In Lagos-Ibadan Expressway Multiple-truck Crash

Published

9 hours ago

October 30, 2025

Editor

At least four persons were feared dead while several others sustained injuries in a multiple-vehicle crash involving five articulated trucks on Kara Bridge, inward Mowe, along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway on Thursday.

A police inspector attached to the Lagos State Police Command was said to be among the victims.

The Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Moshood Jimoh, who confirmed the incident on Thursday during a visit to the scene, said emergency response teams worked through the early hours to rescue victims and clear the wreckage.

“We have a case of multiple accidents at the border between Ogun and Lagos State. Five vehicles were involved, all articulated vehicles. Precisely, three people have been rescued from the scene of the accident.

“As early as 5 a.m., we have been on it, and we have other agencies here assisting us. We have LASTMA, the Road Safety Corps, and other security agencies,” Ishola said.

He explained that preliminary investigations showed the crash was caused by a trailer that suffered brake failure.

“At the beginning, we have a trailer that failed to brake, and it is important that everybody in charge of their vehicle ensures proper maintenance,” he stated.

The commissioner also confirmed the death of one of his officers who was part of the police advance team deployed to the scene.

“It’s very unfortunate that we lost one of our police inspectors who came with our advance team to salvage the situation,” he said.

Ishola cautioned motorists, particularly drivers of articulated vehicles, against reckless driving, which he described as a leading cause of fatal crashes on highways.

“We want road users, especially those driving articulated vehicles, to stop this kind of recklessness. If they are not reckless in their driving habit, we won’t have this kind of accident,” he warned.

Rescue operations involving the police, Federal Road Safety Corps, Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, and other agencies were still ongoing as of press time, while efforts to remove the damaged vehicles and restore traffic flow continued.