FG now has capacity to track, apprehend oil theft practices
Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Mr. Ibe Kachikwu, said the Federal Government has commenced the tracking of Nigeria’s crude oil output and is currently working with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, to track vessels lifting crude oil from the country.
Speaking at the ongoing Nigeria International Petroleum Summit, NIPS, in Abuja, Kachikwu, disclosed that the Federal Government has acquired the capacity to monitor vessels operating in Nigeria Adding that already the monitoring exercise has spotted irregularities in the movement of some of the vessels mandated to lift crude oil from Nigeria.
He said interim data obtained from the monitoring would help to determine the various loading points of the vessels, the dead weight of the vessels and the volume of crude oil lifted from the country. He added that the tracking programme would be extended to the downstream sector to determine the volume of Premium Motor Spirit, PMS, also known as petrol, imported into the country; the quantity of the products brought in by each vessels; the depots the commodity is stored, up to the points of retail to motorists. Kachukwu stated: “For the first time, we know what we are producing in this country.
Nigeria’s total petroleum refining capacity is 445,000 barrels (70,700 m3) per day, however, only 240,000 barrels (38,000 m3) per day was allotted during the 1990s. Subsequently, crude oil production for refineries was reduced further to as little as 75,000 barrels (11,900 m3) per day during the regime of Sanni Abacha. There are four major oil refineries: the Warri Refinery and Petrochemical Plant which can process 125,000 barrels (19,900 m3) of crude per day, the New Port Harcourt Refinery which can produce 150,000 barrels (24,000 m3) per day (there is also an ‘Old’ Port Harcourt Refinery with negligible production), as well as the now defunct Kaduna Refinery. The Port Harcourt and Warri Refineries both operate at only 30% capacity.[10] The Dangote Refinery, expected to open in the early 2020s, will have a 650,000 barrels (103,000 m3) daily capacity.
As to when it is being produced, barrel to barrel, we can tell. We can see even vessels that are coming into Nigeria and their activities. We have seen some vessels go to a location and pick some cargoes, leave that point, go to another point pick something else and return to the first location, when they should be heading to Port Novo or the United States. “What we are trying to do with the EFCC is to gather data and track these vessels, to determine the owners, why did they leave this point, what happened along the way, what is the dead weight of the vessels at the time they were leaving Nigeria and many more. “So for the first time, we are going to soon be able to tell on a day-by-day basis all the activities that took place in the sector and those of the players. We are even going to extend it to the downstream.”
SOURCE: dailyadvent.com
