In the ongoing fight against crude oil theft and illegal refineries in the Niger Delta region, a significant breakthrough has been made with the discovery of nine illegal refinery sites in Bayelsa State. These sites, located in the communities of Okordia/Zarama/Biseni and Ibelebiri/Otuege(Agba), were found to have a combined estimated daily production of over one million barrels.
The operation was carried out by Daven Oil and Security Enterprises, a pipeline security contractor in collaboration with the Joint Task Force, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, and the media. The initiative, known as “Operation No More Smoke,” aims to eradicate illegal oil bunkering activities in the region.
Speaking about the discovery, Okardi Yogo, the spokesman and Mobilization Officer of Daven Oil and Security Enterprises, highlighted the successful efforts of the operation. He revealed that intelligence reports and support from General Amagbein Boro led to the uncovering of these illegal refinery sites.
The sites, hidden deep within the swamp forest, presented challenges in accessing them. It required a trek of more than three hours to reach some of the locations. The operators of these illegal refineries were found to be tapping into pipelines belonging to the Shell Petroleum Development Company for their production.
The impact of these illegal activities was also evident, with a significant environmental destruction observed in a two-hectare land area. The ongoing operation aims to continue uncovering more illegal refinery sites and dismantling them at their roots.
Daven Oil and Security Enterprises emphasized their commitment to protecting the environment and oil facilities to boost oil production and contribute to the Nigerian economy. They also expressed their dedication to collaborating with community leaders and sensitizing the local communities about the negative effects of illegal oil refining.
Yogo said: “This is a baby operation, Daven Oil and Security Limited is one of the pipelines surveillance security taking charge of a section of the Niger Delta. We are here kick-starting the ‘Operations No More Smoke’, we are on discovery sessions, which have yielded good results.
“Based on intelligence reports and support from our grand patron, General Amagbein Boro, we were able to uncover sites with about 15 oven (tanks) with a capacity of 450,000 litres daily production in Okordia/Zarama/Biseni in Yenagoa council.
“We had difficulty accessing the sites because they are tucked away about eight kilometres across the Taylor Creek in the swamp forest. We trekked for more than three hours before we got to the locations. We also discovered that the operators were tapping (sourcing) their production from Shell Petroleum Development Company, SPDC, pipelines in the area.
“We have also visited sites in Ibelebiri and Agba communities in Ogbia council of Bayelsa State and we have also uncovered in these areas, many tanks been constructed by illegal refineries operators with production capacity of more than 500,000 barrels per day, and one of the standouts of that operation was the visible environmental impact. We saw a two hectares of land totally destroyed by activities of artisanal crude oil refining.
“We will continue to uncover more and fetch them out from the roots. Our mandate is to protect the environment and oil facilities to boost oil production and the Nigerian economy, that is the task given to us and we will continue to collaborate and sensitize the communities and work with the leaders of the community.
