NNPC: Oil Production Dips to 1.3mbd Over Vandalism

• NNPC: Oil Production Dips to 1.3mbd Over Vandalism

The Group Managing Director, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Dr. Maikanti Baru, has said an average of 700,000 barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil was deferred last year due to pipeline sabotage. He lamented that this brought production down to as low as 1.3 million (bpd) from 2.2 million barrels targeted for the period.

Baru, who stated this in a keynote address at the maiden edition of the Nigerian International Pipeline Technology and Security Conference (NIPITECS 2017) in Abuja yesterday, said this year, NNPC has recorded 27 breaching incidents on the Trans Niger Pipeline (TNP), adding that for the Trans Forcados Pipeline (TFP) with a capacity of 300,000bpd, 17 breaches were recorded in 2016.

He lamented that NNPC had suffered at least 15 breaching incidents on the TFP this year, urging members of the Pipeline Professionals’ Association of Nigeria (PLAN) to conduct a systematic diagnosis of the pipelines system in the country and come up with sustainable and actionable solutions to the menace of pipeline vandalism in the country.

He urged all key players to rally round the pipeline professionals to proffer solutions to the pipeline vandalism challenge as it posed a great threat to the economy in terms of revenue loss and environmental degradation.

“The foregoing summarises the effect of pipeline vandalism and therefore underscores the importance of protecting our pipeline system and treating them as National Assets. On the strength of that, we must endeavor to carry out a systematic diagnosis and proffer workable, practicable and actionable solutions that will guarantee sustainability of pipeline infrastructure,” he was quoted to have said in a statement endorsed by the Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, Mr. Ndu Ughamadu.

He listed some of the measures deployed by NNPC to stem the tide of pipeline vandalism to include: horizontal directional drilling (HDD) technology to bury pipelines deeper to prevent easy accessibility; technology-based pipeline surveillance mechanism with capability to detect, alert and deny access; and aerial monitoring and marine patrols by the Military Joint Tax Force (JTF).

Dr. Baru further said the government was working out a political solution to the socially-induced-agitation sabotage while the law enforcement agencies had been empowered to deal with those who engage in pipeline vandalism out of criminality such as oil theft.

Speaking earlier on the significance of the conference, Chairman of PLAN, Engr. Geoff Onuoha, said considering the critical role of pipelines to the entire value chain of the oil and gas industry, there was need for a forum like NIPITECS to bring professionals and stakeholders together to brainstorm and share knowledge and technology.

The Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Engr. Simbi Wabote, who also spoke at the occasion, said the Board was working hard to boost local production of pipes, adding that its efforts were already yielding dividends as Nigeria now has two world class pipe mills in full operation.