OIL THEFT FIGURES: Navy Denies Blaming NNPCL …Says they have a cordial relationship and synergy

 

Nigerian Navy and the NNPCL have been working closely to deal with the challenge of growing Oil theft

By Our Correspondent 

The Nigerian Navy has denied ever blaming the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited(NNPCL) over the raging controversy on accurate figures of oil theft in the country.

It would be recalled that the Nigerian Navy reportedly accused the national oil company of reeling out wrong figures of the extent of the oil theft in the country.

But the Navy, in a media statement issued Sunday evening in Abuja and signed by Commodore
AO Ayo-Vaughan, its Director of Information, said throughout the Naval official’s presentation at the National Assembly, before a Senate hearing on the matter, nowhere was the NNPCL indicted.

“The Navy representative at the Senate hearing repeatedly mentioned that the Navy is not indicting the NNPCL in any
way and has been working with the National Oil Giant to curb the menace of crude oil theft since the 1April 2022 when Operation DAKATAR DA BARAWO (OPDDB) was
launched in Onne, Rivers State as a mutual effort and synergy between the Navy and NNPCL to address issues of crude oil theft, rampant illegal artisan refineries and illegal oil bunkering amongst other criminalities in the creeks”, the Navy said in the statement.

The statement also noted that the Nigerian Navy and the NNPCL have been working closely to deal with the challenge of growing Oil theft.

“At the strategic level, almost daily and regular consultations, engagements and meetings hold between the Navy and NNPCL to review the situation, appraise the approach to
curb the menace and proffer ways forward. Pertinently, to attempt to imply otherwise
will be a gross misrepresentation of the cordial and mutual working relationship between the 2 organizations”, the Navy went on to say.

“The said allegation of insincerity and exaggeration by NNPCL as captured by the journalist of the Daily is not therefore a fair wording of the actual discourse that
transpired because what was said and what was meant was inaccurately captured particularly in the wording of the heading of the report.

“Again, for the avoidance of
doubt, the Nigerian Navy under the able leadership of Vice Admiral Awwal Zubairu Gambo CFR has been and will continue to work with NNCPL to fashion out solutions and remedies to the challenges in Nigeria’s Maritime Environment as concerning the Oil Industry for the overall good of Nigeria and indeed for all well-meaning Nigerians.

“Foremost of these mutual efforts is the planned return of the ‘Fisicalisation’ process, which was stopped in the late 1980s, whereby personnel of the Navy as at then, will now again be present at offshore oil loading terminals/platform to physically sight the
meter reading at the point of loading of crude oil to tankers at sea. The first set of naval personnel to soon commence this task were sponsored by NNPCL and trained in the UAE and at Uyo, Akwa-Ibom State.

“There is thus a harmonious working relationship
between the NN and NNPCL. The general public is thus requested to disregard the
misrepresented report”, the Navy insisted in the statement.