Operatives of the Nigerian Navy Ship (NNS) Pathfinder have destroyed an illegal refining site in the creeks of Degema Local Government Area of Rivers State.
POLITICS NIGERIA reports that the Commander of the NNS Pathfinder, Commodore Desmond Igbo, who conducted journalists around the site on Wednesday, estimated the capacity of the refinery at over a million litres.
Commodore Igbo explained that the illegal refinery stole crude oil directly from the wellhead to its reservoir.
“This is NNPC OML-18 being managed by NNPC and Sahara. You can see how these criminals went over there and rigged a hose, that hose is almost 18 inches from the oil well head. They rigged it from there,” he said.
“You can see the crude flowing down to where they have their reservoir and constructed illegal refinery where they cook it. This is economic sabotage to the Nigerian economy.”
Commodore Igbo stated that the Nigerian Navy is canvassing the support of local communities in fighting the menace, adding that no arrests have been made so far.
He lamented the involvement of youths in the illegal oil bunkering and urged the paramount chiefs and leaders in the area to call their youths to order.
“When we come with our gunboats, they ran away,” he said. “But we are still going to trace them and trace those who are sponsoring them.
“They cannot just come here without having big people behind them. We will put down our intelligence and make sure we trace their sponsors.”
