How oil thieves feed fat on Nigeria crude •Why oil theft, illegal refining are unstoppable

Despite concerted efforts of the Federal Government, through the military operations of the Joint Task Force (JTF), otherwise known as “Operation Pulo Shield,” in the heart of the Niger Delta, influential multi-billionaires, who, for decades, have been funding illegal oil bunkering and local refineries are scaling up their cartel to steal the nation’s crude and refined oil in the creeks of the South-South

Sunday Tribune exclusive investigation indicated that most of the suspects arrested by the JTF in the ongoing battle to checkmate siphoning of oil along the coast line and in some oil producing communities located in Bayelsa, Delta, Akwa Ibom, Rivers and Edo states are foot soldiers of powerful barons who actually play behind-the-scene role to sustain illegal bunkering trade in the Niger Delta.

However, majority of the suspects often find their way out of police cells after they must have been handed over by the JTF for prosecution, a development that makes it easier for them to return to the creeks to further perpetrate stealing of oil through ruptured pipelines and abandoned well heads.

Sponsors should be govt target
Credible sources in some communities, villages and cluster towns where most of the illegal refineries and oil installations are situated informed our correspondent that unless the government goes after the businessmen lubricating the rings of oil thieves in the region, the success recorded by the JTF in its harvest of criminals and locals, employed by the cartel would continue to pale into insignificance.

Highly placed security source informed Sunday Tribune that “most of these recalcitrant business moguls who are politicians, former workers of multinational oil companies, retired and serving military officers and some former militant leaders with knowledge of the terrain in the creeks invest funds and also provide logistics, including arms used by their boys to engage the JTF operatives in the creeks.”

Some of the oil vessels used in stealing oil products on the high seas owned or hired by these individuals often secure loading permits from appropriate quarters to load crude from Brass loading terminal in Bayelsa State under pseudo names to shield their identities from the prying eyes of security agencies.

It was also learnt that after obtaining loading permits, their vessels would veer into the creeks, where their accomplices are waiting to pump locally refined AGO into the ocean liners before being sold to pirates roaming the waterways at black market rates.

The proceeds of their illicit trade, Sunday Tribune investigation revealed, are invested in the choice properties in highbrow cities such as Abuja, Warri, Port Harcourt, Lagos, while some of these illegal bunkerers also delve into hospitality business, just as few others plough back their proceed to strengthen their operational bases in the creeks.

‘JTF remains undaunted’
But the media coordinator of the Joint Task Force (JTF) in the Niger Delta, Lieutenant Colonel Nwachukwu Onyema, said the special security force would not be deterred by the unrepentant attitude of illegal oil bunkerers and thieves, contending that new strategies were being evolved to deal with economic saboteurs in the Niger Delta.

In a statement made available to Sunday Tribune, he asserted that “we usually conduct aerial and ground patrols of pipeline networks to deter vandals from sabotaging the pipelines. This has enabled regular pumping of products by the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Port Harcourt Refinery to Aba Depot.”

According to Onyema, “no fewer than 3,778 illegal refineries had been destroyed by the JTF in the second quarter of 2012, while 1,653 persons have been arrested in the creeks for involvement in oil theft.”

He added that eight oil vessels, namely; MT Oxo, MT Tamuno Ibi, Princess Nnena, MT Vanessa,MT Zia, MV Premier and MV Som Trans, used by suspected bunkerers were impounded during the period under review.

“We have also destroyed 120 barges, 878 Cotonou boats, 878 oil tankers, 178 fuel dumps, 5,238 surface tanks, 606 pumping machines, 626 outboard engines, among other facilities used to siphon crude and refined oil products.

“Similarly, cordon and search operations are conducted occasionally, based on credible intelligence to recover arms and ammunition. Worthy of note are the large quantities of assorted ammunitions which were recovered in a shrine at Ojoma Creek, behind Dutch Island, Okrika on 23 February.

“Besides, a raid at Safarogo village in Ovia South-West Local Government Area of Edo State on 26 May led to the arrest of a suspect and the seizure of three AK 47 rifles and other assorted weapons. Also recovered are 1,600 rounds of ammunition,” Onyema continued.

Why perpetrators seem unstoppable
Meanwhile, more facts have emerged on the inability of the Federal Government to stop oil theft in the Niger Delta as industry sources cited high-level corruption and harsh inter-agency rivalry as the main reasons.

Sunday Tribune interactions with top level industry stakeholders during the week revealed that forces behind oil theft and illegal refining business are allegedly closely tied to political and security establishments and that this makes their stoppage a serious problem.

An official in one of the multi-national companies told Sunday Tribune that the illegal business has many facets which do not start or end with “the boys in the creeks and waterways who are just victims of the situation.”

Another official narrated that the illegal business is divided into about three or four parts, each coordinated and managed, adding that “some do the refining, some the transporting, some the barge construction and others on the high seas.

“Now, tell me how anybody can claim that miscreants are involved. It is a very highly sophisticated deal involving many influential figures. Evidence of this is available. The boys in the creeks are regularly updated about plans and moves of the task forces.”

Speaking further, the official narrated that moles operate everywhere, saying “if a raid is to be conducted on an identified illegal refinery or theft point, those boys, within minutes, are in the know. Who briefs them?”

Other stakeholders who talked to Sunday Tribune questioned alleged inability of the military task force to take out the illegal refining sites at a go, citing what they alleged might be complicity within the security circles.

Said an official,“tell me, how can the Nigerian military  claim helplessness in rounding up this illegal operators? If the military cannot police the creeks as they claim, how are they fighting those peacekeeping wars?

“We suspect foul play. That is just my point. But we also know that the matter goes beyond the task forces. You know they are also under command.”

Checks within a particular multinational company, however, raised another level of complications facing the nation in its efforts to combat the illegal trade. This was said to be linked with community security groups normally employed by the operators to police their pipelines.

Findings showed that some of these community groups are, at times, double agents, helping out the pipeline hackers in the night, while purportedly assigned the task of protecting the pipelines from oil thieves.

“We face that challenge sometimes. We resort to employing layers of community guards. At times, rival groups within the same community sabotage the pipelines and aid the oil thieves to discredit the other faction,” our source said.

Clash of agencies also a factor
Further investigations showed that aside the alleged official complicity in the theft and illegal refineries, the agencies involved in the oil industry also operate parallel operations and policies with blame game as a result.

For example, the Director-General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA), Mr. Patrick Akpobolokemi, recently declared that the intervention of Global West Vessel Specialist Limited in securing the nation’s maritime domain had reduced crude oil theft by as much as 70 per cent.

The NIMASA boss said  the  engagement of  Global West Vessel, owned by a former militant chief in the Niger Delta, was a game changer in government‘s efforts to stop oil theft, declaring that the company, contrary to earlier fears, had made positive impact in securing the nation‘s borders against oil thieves and their international gangs.

Akpobolokemi, however, affirmed that plan to stop illegal oil bunkering could only be achieved if the NNPC can account for every drop of crude that leaves the country.

Source: Tribune