The Federal Government has revealed that over N4.3 trillion worth of crude oil was lost to oil theft in 7,143 pipeline vandalism cases within five years.
This startling figure was disclosed at the Nigeria International Pipeline Technology and Security Conference in Abuja, highlighting the severe impact of oil theft on the nation’s economy.
In a presentation at the conference, the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), a government agency, painted a grim picture of the oil theft situation, labelling it a “national emergency”.
NEITI’s Executive Secretary, Ogbonnaya Orji, emphasised the grave consequences of oil theft, stressing its detrimental impact on oil exploration, exploitation, economic growth, business prospects, and oil company profits.
