By Saminu Ibrahim
The Nigerian Navy has uncovered approximately 40,000 litres of substance suspected to be crude oil stored in a large dugout reservoir in the Oteghele general area of Delta State.
The discovery was made on Wednesday by Nigerian Navy Ship DELTA (NNS DELTA) during an intelligence-led operation targeting crude oil theft and related illicit activities within its area of operations.
Director of Naval Information, Navy Captain Abiodun Folorunsho, made this known in a statement on Thursday.
Folorunsho said the operation followed credible intelligence on suspected crude oil theft in the area, adding that the recovered substance and the dugout reservoir were handled in accordance with established procedures.
The latest discovery comes barely two weeks after NNS DELTA uncovered about 30,000 litres of suspected crude oil in the same Oteghele area on September 21.
According to the Navy, the repeated interventions underscore its sustained efforts to disrupt illicit crude oil storage activities and deny criminal operators access to the nation’s petroleum resources.
The Nigerian Navy said it would continue to conduct intelligence-led operations across its areas of responsibility to combat crude oil theft and safeguard Nigeria’s critical petroleum assets.
