Oil pipeline vandalism is on the rise in Nigeria, following a report that only a quarter of the petroleum depots in the country are working. The spate of foreign oil worker kidnappings in the Niger Delta is also linked to vandals and militants.
An investigation conducted by The Guardian of Nigeria, reported that 17 out of the 21 depots operated by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) are out of order.
Findings from the investigations revealed that the present nature of the depots is largely due to the high spate of vandalisation of pipes transporting products to the storage area.
The Guardian reported that Mosimi, Lagos, Port-Hacourt and Aba depots are the only depots currently working.
According to the group managing director of the NNPC, Funsho Kupolokun, vandalisation has assumed a disturbing proportion and now occurs in all parts of the country.
Kupolokun told local media that vandalism has increased in both frequency and volume of products and crude oil loss.
He said, “from 1 121 cases in 2000, it increased in two fold to 2 258 in 2005.
Nigeria possesses one of the greatest oil reserves in the world, but the country’s has been plagued recently by militants demanding a share of the wealth generated by the country’s oil sector. The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (Mend) have taken to kidnapping foreign oil workers and blowing up pipelines to make their claims known. A trend emerged in which oil rigs and installations came under attack by militants killing a number of guards and abducting several oil workers. The oil workers would then be held for ransom and released upon payment.