Navy dismantles 48 illegal refineries, arrests 91 suspects in anti-oil theft crackdown

The Nigerian Navy has significantly intensified its crackdown on crude oil theft, dismantling 48 illegal refinery sites and apprehending 91 suspects during the second quarter of 2026. These operations, conducted under Operation Delta Sentinel between April and June, recovered a substantial 4.698 million liters of stolen crude oil and illegally refined petroleum products.

Captain Abiodun Folorunsho, the Director of Naval Information, stated that the Navy also intercepted several vessels engaged in oil theft and dismantled criminal logistics networks supporting economic sabotage across the Niger Delta. This heightened operational tempo follows the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission's announcement that Nigeria's crude oil production reached 1.735 million barrels per day in June 2026, exceeding its OPEC quota by 104% and marking the highest output since April 2020.

Since April, the Navy has executed over 580 intelligence-driven operations across Rivers, Bayelsa, Delta, Cross River, and Lagos states. These efforts resulted in the recovery of millions of liters of stolen oil and refined products, the arrest of numerous suspects, and the destruction of infrastructure used by criminal syndicates. Notable successes include the interception of tankers allegedly involved in stealing over 900 metric tonnes of crude oil and the recovery of over 708,000 liters of refined products from a single site in Rivers State. The Navy continues to disrupt attempts by criminal groups to reactivate destroyed refining camps, weakening their economic viability.

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The renewed operational tempo comes against the backdrop of the recent announcement by the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) that Nigeria’s crude oil production reached 1.735 million barrels per day in June 2026, representing 104 per cent of Nigeria’s OPEC production quota and the highest crude oil output recorded since April 2020.