Nigeria lost $1.5bn to oil theft in three months - NNPC GMD – Newstrends
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Nigeria lost $1.5bn to oil theft in three months – NNPC GMD

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Group Managing Director of Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd, Mele Kyari, says the nation has lost $1.5bn worth of oil to vandals and operators of illegal refineries between January and March this year.

He said this when he appeared before the House of Representatives Committee on Petroleum (Upstream) on Thursday.

He said the country’s oil sector was recording an all-time low crude oil production of 1.49 million barrels per day due to increase in the activities of vandals and operators of illegal refineries.

“What is going on has nothing to do with the PIA. It is purely an act of thieves; acts of vandals which have rendered the industry unworkable and taken us to the level where today, our production is around 1.49 million barrels per day.”

“When you lose about 200,000 barrels per day, even at an average price of 65 dollars per barrel, we lost close to one billion dollars between January and March. From January till date, we lost an average of 250,000 barrels per day and at the current price of about 100 dollars to the barrel, even within this short period, we have lost close to 1.5 billion dollars.

“This situation deteriorated to the extent that by March 7, 2022, it came to zero and so, we shut down the line and declared force majeure. Even on our most reliable pipeline which is the Forcados pipeline, we still lose about 7,000 barrel per day. Needless to say that this is all coming as a result of the acts of vandals and oil thieves,” he said.

Kyari, however, assured the lawmakers that massive joint security operations among agencies were currently ongoing to address the situation.

“Many of these illegal refineries are being taken down and also the insertions are being constantly removed and we believe that these interventions will pay off. And we will be able to restore production. And this is centrally coordinated. There is a coordinated action now because we are using a number of strategies including community based security outfits”, he said.

Kyari said due to the negative impact of the activities of the oil vandals on the country’s economy and environment, there was a need to set up a special court to prosecute such cases to ensure speedy dispensation.

Chairman, House Committee on Petroleum (Upstream), Sarki Ada (APC-Sokoto), had earlier said the interface with the NNPC GMD was to ascertain the factors responsible for the decline in the country’s oil production with a view to proffering solutions.

He promised the House would give the necessary support to address the issue in the interest of the country.

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Naira recovers against dollar, euro, pound closes below N1,600/$1 at official market

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Naira recovers against dollar, euro, pound closes below N1,600/$1 at official market

The official market observed a modest increase in the value of the Naira against the dollar, concluding at N1,597.24 to $1, marking a 0.34% enhancement from the prior closing figure of N1,602.75 to $1 from the preceding week’s end.

This recent closing figure of N1,597.24 to the dollar signifies the first instance of a rate ending beneath the N1,600/$1 mark since March 5th, 2024.

Additionally, data from NAFEM disclosed a slight rise of 2.20% in forex dealings, reaching $140.45 million as opposed to the $137.43 million noted earlier.

On Monday, within the Investors and Exporters (I&E) window, the naira saw mixed results against major global currencies.

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The I&E FX window recorded a high of N1640/$1 and a low of N1,400.00, indicating a fluctuation of N240/$1.

In the parallel market, the naira appreciated by 0.78% against the US dollar, trading at N1,608 compared to the previous figure of N1,614 per dollar.

Against the pound sterling, the naira modestly gained by 0.74%, ending at N2,030/£1 from the earlier rate of N2,045/£1.

It also made gains against the euro by 0.58%, closing at N1,725/€1 up from last week’s Friday rate of N1,735/€1.

The country’s foreign reserves saw a slight increase of $2.71 million as of March 14, 2024, amounting to $34.416 billion—a 0.008% rise from the previous day’s reserves of $34.413 billion.

Nigeria’s foreign reserves have been on an upward trajectory for 20 days (approximately 3 weeks), starting from February 13, 2024.

Naira recovers against dollar, euro, pound closes below N1,600/$1 at official market

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Railway

Vandals destroy rail track in Kaduna community

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Vandals destroy rail track in Kaduna community

Vandals have destroyed a rail track at Chidunu village in the Chikun Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

The hoodlums taking advantage of high rate of insecurity in the area stormed the village and reportedly loaded their three trucks with track materials forcefully removed from the rail.

Public Relations Officer for the Northern District of the Nigeria Railway Corporation, Alhaji Abdullahi, in a statement on Monday, said two of the truck were stopped and impounded by security agents.

However, a Canter truck driver absconded with a portion of the stolen materials.

Some of the vandals were also apprehended by security operatives around the community.

Abdullahi highlighted the logistical challenges with the urgency to act before nightfall and the volatile nature of the area.

“It was difficult to arrange for logistics to evacuate track rails and sleepers before it got dark,” he said, emphasizing the collaborative efforts with local vigilantes and hunters to bolster surveillance along the affected railway stretch.

“We received a report on Sunday that the vandals were arrested during their illicit operation with two long trucks loaded with rail track materials,” Abdullahi said.

He added that the case has been handed over to the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) for further investigation.

“The case is at present with the NSCDC, O.C. Anti-Vandal for further investigation,” Abdullahi stated.

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Panic as CBN set to fire more directors

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Panic as CBN set to fire more directors

About 12 more directors of the Central Bank of Nigeria are said to have been listed for sacking in a reorganization move by the Governor of the apex bank, Olayemi Cardoso.
This is coming after seven directors were fired last Friday.
Two of the seven terminated directors are currently facing a case with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) due to their implication in the Jim Obaze report.
Obaze was appointed as Special Investigator by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to scrutinise the activities of the CBN under the watch of its former Governor Godwin Emefiele.
While the two directors are said to have accepted their fate, the other five are planning to take a legal action against the bank for alleged unlawful termination of their appointments.
The termination letters sent to the seven directors cited “reorganizational and human capital restructuring” as reasons for their dismissal.
The letters stated that they were relieved of their jobs with effect from Friday March 15, 2024.
They were directed to hand over all bank properties in their care to their department’s administrator immediately.
The Nation reported that 12 more directors are set to be dismissed.

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