Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Heineken Lokpobiri, has attributed the persistent issues of petrol smuggling and oil theft to two key factors: product subsidies and corroded pipelines.
Lokpobiri revealed this while speaking at the recent Energy and Labour Summit 2024 in Abuja, organized by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria.
According to Lokpobiri, the Nigerian Petroleum Company Limited’s sale of fuel below the landing cost is driving smuggling to neighboring West African countries.
Lokpobiri reinforced his argument by revealing that many of Nigeria’s crude oil pipelines are outdated and have deteriorated, creating an environment conducive to vandalism and oil theft.
The minister therefore recommended a public-private partnership approach to overhaul and modernize the outdated pipelines, stressing the importance of collaboration in resolving the problem.
He said: “Nigeria plays a very critical role in the energy security in Africa. That is why whatever PMS we import into Nigeria finds its way to the whole of West Africa. That is why smuggling cannot stop.
“If NNPC imports PMS and sells to marketers at perhaps N600 or below, there’s no way that smuggling can stop.
“The reason why pipeline vandalism is very easy to do is that the pipelines have all expired; they completely corroded and so, anybody can just go and tap it and the thing is busted.
“But there are better technologies which are more expensive, there are better pipelines that other people are using in other countries, but they are not cheap, We also need to change our model”, he stated.
“That is why we have to go for the global model – PPP. We have to get the private sector to come in.”
The Nigeria Customs had reported a significant seizure in July, confiscating 41,425 liters of petrol from smugglers at the country’s border.
In a separate operation, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL recently announced the destruction of numerous illegal oil pipeline connections and the discovery of 63 illicit refineries in the Niger Delta region, a hub of oil production.
