Billionaire Tony Elumelu has called on security agencies to identify and expose those involved in stealing the country’s crude oil, particularly those using vessels in Nigeria’s territorial waters.
In an interview with the Financial Times published on Friday, Elumelu highlighted that this theft has contributed to foreign oil companies withdrawing from Nigeria.
He shared that the theft of crude from his pipelines made him understand why major oil firms have been reducing their onshore operations.
Elumelu recalled a 2022 incident when his company had to halt production, tweeting, “How can we be losing over 95 percent of our oil production to thieves? The Bonny Terminal, which should handle over 200,000 barrels of crude daily, instead receives fewer than 3,000 barrels, forcing Shell to declare force majeure.”
“The reason Nigeria is unable to meet its OPEC production quota is not because of low investment but because of theft, pure and simple!
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“Meanwhile, oil-producing countries are smiling as their foreign reserve is rising. What is Nigeria’s problem? We need to hold our leaders more accountable!”
Speaking with the Financial Times on Friday, Elumelu alleged oil thieves still take away 18 percent of crude from his field.
“42,000 barrels of crude pumped out daily. Theft still takes away about 18 percent of production,” he stated.
Asked who is behind the theft, he replied: “This is oil theft, we’re not talking about stealing a bottle of Coke you can put in your pocket. The government should know, they should tell us.
“Look at America — Donald Trump was shot at and quickly they knew the background of who shot him. Our security agencies should tell us who is stealing our oil. You bring vessels to our territorial waters and we don’t know?”
