The Nigerian Navy has foiled an attempt by crude oil theft syndicates to establish illegal storage facilities in the Bonny axis of Rivers State.
The Director of Naval Information, Capt. Abiodun Folorunsho, disclosed in an operational report on Monday in Abuja that personnel of the Forward Operating Base (FOB) Bonny carried out the operation under Operation DELTA SENTINEL.
According to him, the naval team conducted a targeted anti-crude oil theft operation around Dema Abbey community in Bonny, where they discovered seven concealed dugout pits suspected to have been prepared for storing stolen crude oil.
Folorunsho said preliminary assessments showed that four of the pits were newly excavated, while the remaining three contained water, suggesting they were being prepared to support illegal oil theft activities.
He explained that similar concealed pits had previously been identified as temporary storage points used by criminals before transporting stolen crude oil to illegal refining locations.
“The newly excavated pits were subsequently dismantled in accordance with extant anti-crude oil theft procedures, effectively denying criminal elements the infrastructure required to establish another crude oil storage hub within the Bonny operational area,” he said.
The naval spokesperson said the operation demonstrated the Navy’s strategy of disrupting oil theft activities at the early stages by targeting the infrastructure that enables criminal operations.
He added that the approach had continued to weaken the logistics network supporting crude oil theft and illegal refining activities across the Niger Delta.
Folorunsho reaffirmed the Navy’s commitment to sustaining intelligence-led operations aimed at dismantling criminal networks, protecting Nigeria’s oil and gas assets, and supporting national economic security.
Samuel Agada is a writer and media contributor from Olamaboro Local Government Area of Kogi State, Nigeria. He is a graduate of Biochemistry from the University of Jos and a former banker with GTBank and FCMB. A prolific writer, songwriter, educator, and Gospel preacher, he is passionate about informing, inspiring, and impacting society through his work.