Navy deactivates over 70 illegal refinery sites across Niger Delta

The Nigerian Navy has revealed that its Special Forces deactivated more than 70 illegal refinery sites and confiscated over 400,000 litres of stolen crude oil across the Niger Delta in July 2025 alone.

In a statement released on Thursday, the Director of Naval Information, Commodore Aiwuyor Adams-Aliu, said the operations—conducted under Operation Delta Sanity—represented a significant escalation in the Navy’s campaign against oil theft and illegal refining activities in hotspot locations across Rivers, Delta, Akwa Ibom, and Bayelsa States.

One of the major highlights of the month’s crackdown included multiple raids on illegal refining camps in Warri South West (Delta State) and Biseni community (Bayelsa State), where large volumes of stolen crude and illegally refined products were discovered and destroyed.

“In one instance, over 250,000 litres of stolen crude oil were found concealed in a massive pond used by oil thieves,” Adams-Aliu said.

He also disclosed that several suspects were arrested while attempting to smuggle petroleum products to Cameroon via Akwa Ibom waterways. Additionally, naval units intercepted vessels carrying thousands of litres of illegally refined fuel.

Items recovered during the operations included pumping machines, metal storage tanks, underground reservoirs, and locally fabricated ovens used for refining.

In total, the Navy denied oil thieves access to:

411,400 litres of crude oil

87,825 litres of Automotive Gas Oil (AGO)

72,000 litres of Dual Purpose Kerosene (DPK)

21,900 litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS)

The Navy reiterated its commitment to sustaining the offensive, in line with the directive of the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla.

The military effort, according to the statement, not only disrupts the operations of oil thieves but also contributes significantly to Nigeria’s increasing crude oil production. The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) recently confirmed that production has now exceeded 1.8 million barrels per day.

The Navy affirmed its determination to continue its robust security presence in the Niger Delta to protect critical national assets and ensure the country’s energy security