NNPCL tasks military on sustained onslaught against crude oil theft

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, has tasked the Nigerian military on sustaining its onslaught against crude oil theft in the country.

The company's Group Chief Executive Officer, Mele Kyari made the call on Tuesday when he hosted the Chief of Defence Staff, CDS, General Christopher Gwabin Musa alongside other senior military officers in Abuja.

Kyari acknowledged that the military onslaught against crude oil theft and pipeline vandalism has yielded improved growth in the nation’s crude oil production.

He said: “I personally call for enhanced and sustained security engagement. This is because we have reached a new peak in production that we haven't seen in the last three years. 

"This is clearly related to the sustained efforts by the armed forces and other security agencies to protect our critical assets, particularly the pipeline infrastructure in specified areas where we are working closely with these agencies. We are already seeing the results transforming into increased production."

Olufemi Soneye, the company's Chief Corporate Communications Officer disclosed this in a statement, adding that Kyari also commended the CDS and his team for "securing the nation's critical hydrocarbon assets especially in the Niger Delta region in recent months."

He emphasized that the recent achievements were crucial to Nigeria and the global energy community.

He further expressed confidence that the CDS and his team will deliver on the Presidential mandate to mitigate security-related challenges affecting the nation’s crude oil production. 

He said: "Components of this effort that depend on security are being effectively managed by you. Your coordinated and focused response is paving the way for improved security engagement, particularly in the Niger Delta."

In his earlier remark, General Musa said the visit was intended to "introduce the Monitoring Team to the NNPC Ltd, which will be responsible for interfacing with the Company and other stakeholders in the oil-producing regions to secure the nation’s critical hydrocarbon infrastructure."

The Defence Chief further pledged his commitment to improving the security and performance of troops, saying "The military will sustain the onslaught and analyse the troops' capabilities to enhance their performance and bolster productivity."

CDS Musa also emphasized the need to ramp up production for a prosperous economy and reassured collaboration with intelligence agencies, private security, state governments and host communities for enhanced performance.