Ex-militant Government ‘Tompolo’ Ekpemupolo’s Tantita Security Services has discovered another illegal pipeline used by oil thieves to syphon crude oil for export in Delta State.

The most recent find was reportedly made within a short distance from the Forcados Export Terminal in the Ogulagha neighbourhood, directly behind a military surveillance station.

Report details that the pipeline is about five kilometres long, with one kilometre to the shore and four kilometres to the loading bay.

The pipeline, owned by Nigerian Agip Oil Company Limited, had previously been abandoned by ExxonMobil before being reconnected by the oil thieves to loot crude oil into export tankers from a Shell-operated 48-inch export line.

Warredi Enisuo, Marine Intelligence Consultant for Tantita Security Services Limited, told journalists on Saturday that the illegal pipeline was connected to the 48-inch Trans Forcados Export Trunkline.

“The illegal pipeline was connected to another abandoned pipeline located within the vicinity which is owned by Nigerian Agip Oil Company Limited.

“The perpetrators of this organised crime tapped into a Shell-operated 48-inch export line. So, the crude oil has been cleaned up and is ready for export. It is quite expensive. They tapped into it to syphon the crude oil,” he said.

“Though the oil field belonged to Agip, which has not been put into use for a long time, the oil thieves decided to export crude oil to a jacket by connecting theirs through a riser out into the jacket where they export the stolen crude oil,” he added.

A week ago, the security firm found a four-kilometre crude oil pipeline that had been operating illegally from the Forcados facility to the sea for nine years.

These discoveries come amidst reports that the country is losing most of its oil revenue to theft.

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited last August announced the award of the pipeline protection contract worth N48 billion annually (N4 billion per month) to Mr Ekpemupolo, otherwise known as Tomopolo. 

The award of the multibillion-naira contract to Tompolo had sparked criticism and widespread condemnation from political and social organisations in Nigeria. 

The chief executive officer of NNPCL, Mele Kyari, had insisted that the Buhari regime took the right decision in awarding Tompolo the oil pipeline contract.