By Ebi Perekeme
The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation has said it spent a total of N32.56bn on pipeline security and maintenance from February to July this year.
The NNPC spent N5.81bn on pipeline security and management in February; N5.32bn in March; N2.64bn in April; N5.26bn in May; N6.17bn in June, and N7.35bn in July.
A total of 261 pipeline points were vandalised in the first five months of this year, the latest data obtained from the NNPC showed.
The number of vandalised pipeline points rose from 27 in January to 54 in February.
In March, 70 pipeline points were vandalised, representing a 29.63 per cent increase from the 54 points recorded in February.
A total of 64 pipeline points were vandalised in May, representing 39.13 per cent increase from the 46 points recorded in April.
The NNPC said the Port Harcourt area accounted for 65 per cent in May while Mosimi and Kaduna areas accounted for 30 per cent and five per cent respectively of the vandalised points.
“NNPC in collaboration with the local communities and other stakeholders continuously strive to reduce and eventually eliminate this menace,” the corporation said.
The corporation had repeatedly said product theft and vandalism had continued to destroy value and put NNPC at disadvantaged competitive position.
A total of 441 points on petroleum products pipelines were vandalised last year, compared to 1,484 points in 2019, the NNPC data showed.
The corporation spent N53.36bn on pipeline repairs and management cost in 2020.
The Group Managing Director, NNPC, Mallam Mele Kyari, said recently that the introduction of Operation White and the Automated Downstream Operations and Financial Monitoring Centre had made it possible for the corporation to monitor products supply and distribution across the country.
He said this had reduced illicit practices such as oil theft and cross border smuggling of petroleum products which used to cause dislocation in the supply and distribution matrix and huge revenue losses to the nation.
In January, the national oil company said a total of 96 companies from various jurisdictions had indicated interest in undertaking the rehabilitation of its downstream facilities, ranging from critical pipelines to depots and terminals, through the Build, Operate and Transfer financing model.
The Managing Director of the Nigerian Pipelines and Storage Company, Mrs Ada Oyetunde, said the exercise was in conformity with the mandate of the Federal Government to prioritise the rehabilitation of critical downstream infrastructure across the country.
She listed the facilities that would be rehabilitated by successful bidders to include critical pipelines for crude oil supply to the refineries and evacuation of refined products, depots, and terminals.
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