The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) on Thursday demanded a special court to halt crude oil theft in Nigeria.
The national oil company is also asking for a speedy resolution of offenses related to vandalism and stealing of crude oil.
According to statistics from the Nigerian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), Nigeria is losing about 103 million barrels of crude oil to theft yearly. If sold at yesterday’s rate of $82 per barrel, the stolen crude amounts to $8.4 billion yearly. This is about 24 per cent of the country’s 2024 $34 billion national budget, which is largely borrowed.
In addition to this, as of 2023, the NNPCl spent N136 billion on security, repairs, and maintenance of vandalised infrastructure.
Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPCL Limited, Mele Kyari, asked for the support of the judiciary in tackling the twin challenges of crude oil theft and pipeline vandalism.
Kyari made the call on Thursday in Abuja, when speaking at the National Judges Capacity Building Workshop on the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021, organized by the National Judicial Institute (NJI) and INVESTIN 234.
Kyari said the gains of the PIA have been severely undermined by crude oil theft and pipeline vandalism and urged the judiciary to consider the creation of a special court to try offenses related to crude oil theft and pipeline vandalism or to grant accelerated hearings to such cases.
According to him, the role of the judiciary is critical to the success of the efforts of the various security arrangements put in place by NNPC, the law enforcement agencies, and other stakeholders in the industry.
“In particular, the recommendation is that a special court be created to try those offenses as they hinge on our survival as a country, and/or for such trials to be conducted under an accelerated hearing process by the issuance of Practice Directions to that effect, with concomitant sanctions to deter would-be offenders,” Kyari stated.
He called on the judiciary to accelerate hearings of criminal cases in their courts, through timely determination of the criminal charges and imposing adequate punishments and sanctions on culprits to serve as a deterrent to others.
Kyari noted that NNPC remains committed to collaborating with all relevant stakeholders to ensure the successful implementation of the PIA, adding that “together, we can ensure that the benefits of our natural resources are maximized for the economic and social development of our country.”
