By Joy Odor Abuja
The Nigerian Navy has recorded major operational victories in the fight against crude oil theft and illegal refining, dismantling 71 illicit refinery sites and seizing hundreds of thousands of litres of stolen petroleum products across the Niger Delta in July 2025.
The feats were achieved under Operation Delta Sanity, relaunched in December 2024 to secure Nigeria’s maritime domain and protect the nation’s oil assets.
According to Naval Headquarters Spokesperson, Commodore A. Adams-Aliu, the July operations spanned Rivers, Delta, Bayelsa, and Akwa Ibom States, targeting crude oil thieves, smugglers, and illegal refiners.
Among the key operations:
July 4 — Six illegal refinery sites were deactivated in Rivers State, with 40 dugout pits holding 66,000 litres of suspected crude oil and 40,000 litres of illegally refined Automotive Gas Oil (AGO).
July 12 — One refinery site with 2,300 litres of stolen crude was dismantled in Otegele, Delta State.
July 14 — Three suspected smugglers were arrested in Akwa Ibom with 2,500 litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) intended for Cameroon.
July 22–23 — Massive operations in Biseni Community, Bayelsa, uncovered over 450,000 litres of stolen crude oil, large storage pits, metal ovens, and siphoning equipment.
July 27–28 — Multiple active sites in Delta State were neutralised, including tanks and reservoirs holding more than 20,000 litres of crude oil.
By month’s end, the Navy had denied oil thieves approximately 411,400 litres of crude oil, 87,825 litres of AGO, 72,000 litres of Dual Purpose Kerosene (DPK), and 21,900 litres of PMS.
“These significant successes underscore the resilience of the Nigerian Navy under the leadership of the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ikechukwu Ogalla, to completely eradicate crude oil theft and boost national oil production,” Adams-Aliu stated.
The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) recently confirmed that the country’s oil production has risen above 1.8 million barrels per day, a milestone attributed in part to intensified naval operations.
The Navy therefore reaffirmed its commitment to maritime safety, curbing illicit activities, and strengthening national security across Nigeria’s waterways.
