Nine interconnected Illegal Refinery Site camps, including five operational reservoirs in Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, and Ondo States, have been destroyed by Nigerian Navy troops participating in Operation Delta Sanity II.
In a statement, Naval Spokesman Commodore A. Adams-Aliu said that during the operations, the Marines found 1,400 liters of illegally refined automotive gas oil, 20,000 liters of crude oil, pumping apparatus, and locally built boats.
The statement claims that on January 6, 2025, forces found a substantial amount of stolen crude oil in an illegal refining plant near the Igbomotoru district of Bayelsa State.
The illegal goods were confiscated and treated in accordance with current standards, according to Commodore Adams-Aliu.
In the Iko Area of Akwa-Ibom State, on January 7, 2025, troops once more stopped a big wooden boat that was stealing crude oil from Enang C Platform.
According to him, the vessel was equipped with twelve 10,000-liter GP tanks, four submersible pumps, outboard engines, three service tanks, and two 10,000-liter GP tanks that were suspected of holding 100,000 liters of stolen crude oil.
Similarly, on January 7, 2025, soldiers at Forward Operating Base Igbokoda found an illegal refinery site in the Obe-Nla Riverine Community of Ilaje local government area in Ondo State state.
Nine interconnected Illegal Refinery Site sites, including five operating reservoirs, were deactivated as a result of the operation. About 20,000 liters of crude oil, 1,400 liters of illegally refined automotive gas oil, pumping apparatus, and locally built boats were among the items found, he said.
According to Adams-Aliu, the Nigerian Navy’s determination to end crude oil theft was strengthened by the successful operations in the first week of 2025.