Oil thieves retreat as Navy smashes 78 illegal refineries

This certainly is not the best of times for operators of illegal refineries in Rivers State as men of the Nigerian Navy Ship, Pathfinder, are already making good their threat of putting them permanently out of business. In fact, in the last two months, 78 illegal refineries have been smashed in various creeks in the State.

According to Commander Shuwa Abdulrahim  Mohammed of the  Nigerian Navy Ship Pathfinder in the state: “The heat is already on oil thieves and those running illegal refineries in the state. The anti-oil theft war is on, no compromise”.

He said his men will not relent until all illegal refiners are flushed out. “We will  smoke these oil  thieves out of their hideouts. They will have no peace unless they change from this illicit act,” he told newsmen at the base.

His men have continued to comb all parts of the creeks for oil thieves. Last Saturday while the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ekwe Ibas  was at the Naval Ship Pathfinder, Commander Mohammed’s men were at Oloma community smashing  illegal crude oil refineries.

Base Operations Officer, Nigerian Naval Ship Pathfinder, Commander Innocent Chidi Ejiofor, said they go on daily patrol with gunboats on waterways fighting these oil thieves. “The Base regularly deploys gunboats for daily patrols and show of force along Port Harcourt and Bonny Channels as well as within creeks in our area of operations. On August 5, 2015, NNS PATHFINDER deployed two gunboats to Onne axis and  Bolo area.

“The Gunboat Team located a large illegal bunkering site along NAFCON  Creek, Onne axis. Three active illegal crude oil refineries, three storage tanks, one containing about 10,000 litres and the other two each containing about 5,000 litres of substance suspected to be stolen crude oil and, another three ground storage tanks each containing about 2,000 litres of product suspected to be illegally refined AGO were discovered at the site and were set ablaze in situ,” he said.

Commander Ejiofor said they also smashed a storage tank farm and drums containing a total of about 700, 000 liters of illegal crude around Cartharwn channel and Bile axis recently.

He said the oil thieves had also started storing stolen crude at underground tank farms, adding that the ones found were also destroyed  during the Cartharwn channel operation. Four  of those destroyed had about 50,000 AGO.

In Ogbobolo creek, Bolo area of Eleme local government of Rivers State another batch, five illegal refineries, 15 storage tanks bearing about 50,000 illegal crude oil were also destroyed. Also smashed were another 15 tanks containing 750,000 illegally refined AGO.

Rear Admiral Ibas said the Navy was already building capacity to enhance its operations. He said though the Navy cannot reach all the locations where wellheads, pipelines and oil facilities are but this will not limit its effort at tackling the problem.

For the full story, check the Vanguard Newspaper.