Nigeria racks up oil production but still short of OPEC quota
By Jeph Ajobaju, Chief Copy Editor
Nigeria has increased oil production to 1.67 million barrels per day (mbpd), a cherry news, even though it is still short of 1.8 mbpd allocated by the Organisation of Oil Exporting Countries (OPEC).
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) confirmed the rise at a Stakeholders Conference on Oil Theft and Losses in Nigeria, held at Transcorp Hilton, Abuja.
The event chaired by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.
NNPC Group Chief Executive Officer Mele Kyari said the rectangular security approach – comprising NNPC and partners, regulators, government security operators and communities, boosted by the adoption of technology – facilitated the recovery from what it was in July 2022 to 1.67 mbpd.
Kyari, represented by Chief Upstream Investment Officer Bala Wunti, explained the game changer against oil theft and vandalism also involved:
- Implementation of the Detect, Deter, Destroy and Recover (3D strategy)
- Establishment of the Central Command and Control Centre for effective monitoring and coordination
- Launch of the Whistle-Blowers Portal and the Crude Oil Validation Portal
- Deployment of some of the best-in-class surveillance tools and technology
To him, a key element of the collaboration is the onboarding of private security contractors from host communities, which were hitherto isolated.
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Improving security apparatus
Kyari said the security contractors’ in-depth knowledge of the terrain and modus operandi of criminals led to massive discoveries of illegal connections and interception of vessels ferrying stolen crude oil, per The Guardian.
With current sustained efforts, he added, facilities shut down have reopened, and injection of crude oil into major trunklines for evacuation to terminals is being ramped up.
He said the oil and gas industry is poised to reposition itself for a sustainable growth trajectory, as efforts to rid Nigeria of oil theft continue to gain traction.
According to Kyari, a lot of work has gone into changing the narrative and bringing all industry stakeholders together to confront a common enemy.
Crude oil theft has been a major setback for Nigeria.
Last August, it forced production down to 1.1 mbpd, which cut the contribution of foreign exchange (forex) earnings from oil export from 90 per cent, when production was high, to 78.5 per cent in the third quarter of 2022 (Q3 2022).
The NNPC engaged a private security firm, Tantita Securities Service, owned by Government Oweizide Ekpemupolo (Tompolo), on 13 August 2022 for pipeline surveillance.
The NNPC and security agencies have established a control centre to provide surveillance of all oil and gas assets in the Niger Delta.
The surveillance system is known as the Central Coordination, Data Integration and Activation Control Room.
Osinbajo reiterated at the event in Abuja that tackling crude oil theft and sabotage remains a major concern of the federal government and those in charge must be accountable because, besides economic consequences, institutional and personal reputations are at stake.
“So grievous a crime cannot simply be a subject of summitry; people must do their jobs, and if they are unable to do them, then there must be an accounting for such failures. Institutional and personal reputations are at stake,” he said.
“Oil theft and sabotage of oil and gas assets are a clear and present danger to our economy and national security.
“Not only do they pose a serious threat to oil exploration and our energy economy, but they also impact negatively on revenue accruals to the federation and the business prospects of investors in the oil sector.”