The war against illegal oil tapping points sabotaging Nigeria’s economy has recorded another huge success as 42 more tapping points used by crude oil bunkerers were uncovered in Delta and Bayelsa states by security officials.
Government Ekpemupolo also known as Tompolo who spoke to newsmen, yesterday, at Oporoza, the traditional headquarters of Gbaramatu kingdom, Warri South-West Local Government Area, Delta State, said three major crude pipelines, including the Trans-Escravos and Trans- Ramos lines were tapped by the oil bunkerers.
Tompolo, whose security company, Tantita Security Services Limited, TSSL was awarded a contract to prevent oil theft disclosed that as of Sunday, October 9, 2022, over 58 points tapping points that oil bunkers have used in stealing crude oil from the nation’s pipelines in Delta and Bayelsa states have been uncovered.
At the time the Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Irabor, and the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited, NNPCL, Mele Kyari, visited Delta State, last Friday, Tantita reported the discovery of 16 tapping points on the trans-Forcados pipeline, which NNPCL had clamped.
Hear him; “As of today (Sunday), we have discovered over 58 tapping points that oil bunkerers have used in stealing crude oil from the nation’s pipelines in Delta and Bayelsa states.”
“In Delta, three major crude pipelines, including the trans-Escravos and Trans- Ramos lines have been tapped by oil bunkerers.
“The tapping points that were traced on Friday were with the help of the security agencies, which was why inside the rain and everything, we could trace the lines.
“We are doing the work together with the security agents; we are only providing intelligence for the security to assist to do the work.
Therefore, everybody, NNPCL, and security agencies are working together in a very good spirit.
“The military has helped us to discover and stop the people from doing illegal activities, so we are going to work together and we do not want to go into details. The stealing had been going on for over eight to nine years,” he said.
On the threat messages to his boys, he said: “As for threat messages, that is normal, even this morning, they sent messages to me, but I think it is something we can handle.”
The ex-militant leader, who sounded optimistic that they would soon curtail illegal oil bunkering, said: “With the way we are going now, we are getting cooperation from all the security agencies, both the ones in the state here and at the top. Therefore, by the grace of God, in no distant time, we will stop this largely.”
No major challenge
He said his company is not facing any major challenge, adding: “At every point in time, we will always provide the intelligence and security people will come and do the work.”
On the barricading of creeks by oil bunkerers with trees, he said: “That is the more reason we are involved, if we see any creek that is blocked with trees, we will bring in motor-saw to cut it and we will go inside.
“Where the security people cannot even go, we will first go there and ask them to follow because we cannot do anything without the security people. In addition, with the way all of them are actually cooperating, we will achieve the desired result.
“The communities are not posing a problem, it is the bunkerers that offer resistance but even at that, like what I said before, this is our area, we are doing everything to ensure that we reduce oil bunkering to the barest minimum because the aquatic life in our area is almost gone.
“As for the crude oil that we recover from the creek, we are trying to get a barge where we will pump in the product. Along the line, if any sinks, we will not follow that because the terrain is bad. However, we will do everything within our power to stop further destruction and pollution.
“There is no creek that anybody will pass in the region that I will not understand or the people working with me will not know. For now, we do not have any problem.
“Our major problem is that the aquatic life of the people is gone and we are doing everything together with traditional rulers, security agencies, Department of State Services, DSS, and others to ensure that we reduce it to the barest minimum so that our people can survive.”
Admitting that pipeline surveillance “is stressful,” he said there was no problem with the communities and that he is optimistic that oil bunkerers would yield to his appeal to stop oil bunkering.
His words: “Before this time, I have been discussing with oil bunkerers, whether from Rivers or Bayelsa, all over the place. Even many of them actually understand that oil bunkering is not a good thing for our environment.
“And that is the more reason we think there will not be much problem for us to stop it, but their complaint is that there are no other means of survival.”
On the scarcity of kerosene, he said, “We are going to appeal to Federal Government and NNPCL to see what they can do about the local refinery, but you cannot fight illegality with illegality.”
It would be recalled that the Chief Executive of Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited, Mele Kayari, on Tuesday, revealed that the Company has uncovered an illegal 4km pipeline from Forcados in Delta State to The Sea and a Loading Port that has operated in the last nine years.
Kyari made the revelation when he appeared before a joint senate committee on Upstream, Downstream and Gas, lamenting that though oil theft in Nigeria has been on for over 22 years, the rate it has assumed in recent times is unprecedented.
