By Adewale Sanyaolu
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has expressed concerns over the Warri-Benin pipelines that have been moribund for over 22 years due to activities of vandals.
This was even as the company pointed out that over 5,000 kilometers of petroleum product pipelines scattered across the country are now dysfunctional following persistent pipeline vandalism with majority gone obsolete and unserviceable.
Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of NNPCL, Mr. Mele Kyari, disclosed this during a session with Senate Committee on Downstream in Abuja, at the weekend
Kyari expressed regrets over the calamity bedeviling the oil sector in the country, adding that the company had not been able to pump oil through Warri to Benin pipeline in 22 years.
He lamented that the vandalism carried out on over 5,000 kilometers of oil pipelines by criminals across the country had become a national calamity.
The NNPCL boss, however assured Nigerians that the nation’s four oil refineries would become functional very soon.
As a result of the activities of pipeline vandals, Kyari disclosed that 10 million litres of oil was lost from the volume pumped from Aba to Enugu all the time.
“Over 5,000 kilometres oil pipelines in the country are not working. As a result of pipeline vandalism, 10 million litres of oil were lost from volume pumped from Aba to Enugu at a time.
“The company has been unable to pump oil from Warri to Benin within the last 22 years and cannot connect to Ore.
There is no amount of security measures that had not been taken to curb the crime without success, which to us in NNPCL, is substantially a national calamity.”
The company is embarking on massive replacement of the pipelines, which, aside being vandalised, are old and obsolete.
He explained further to the committee that deregulation of the oil sector and, in particular, subsidy removal carried out in May this year has turned NNPCL into a profitable company .
He explained that before deregulation in 2018, the company made a loss of N802 billion, but after deregulation in 2021, it made an excess profit of N687 billion.
He added that while 67 million litres of oil was consumed per day during the era of subsidy regime, average of 55 million litres are being consumed on daily basis now, just as the problem of smuggling the product across border, has become things of the past .
In their remarks, the Chairman of the committee, Senator Ifeanyi Ubah and other members, said that proper dissection of challenges facing the sector would be better made in a retreat.
Senator Seriake Dickson told the NNPCL boss to look critically into the surveillance security contract the company is operating as regards non inclusion of some oil producing areas .
He said: “Some local governments in Bayelsa State like Sagbama where i come from are not covered by the contract with attendant consequences.”