Nigerian economist and banker Tony Elumelu has called for the federal government to reveal the individuals responsible for the widespread oil theft occurring in the country. In an interview featured in the Financial Times on Friday, Elumelu emphasized that the government should be aware of the identities of those using ships to illegally extract crude oil from Nigeria’s territorial waters.
He explained that he had discovered why international oil companies were reducing their investments in onshore assets. Criminal gangs had begun stealing crude oil from his pipelines, prompting this shift. Elumelu revealed that these thefts account for about 18 percent of the crude oil produced from his fields.
Elumelu provided specifics: “We pump out 42,000 barrels of crude oil daily. Yet, theft still takes about 18 percent of this production.” When asked about the possible perpetrators of the oil theft, Elumelu made a pointed comparison: “This isn’t like stealing a bottle of Coke that you can hide in your pocket.
This is a major crime. The government needs to reveal who is behind these thefts. In America, when something serious happens, like when Donald Trump was shot at, authorities quickly found out who was responsible.
“Our security agencies should investigate and inform the public about who is stealing our oil. How can ships come into our territorial waters, and we have no idea who is involved?”
