The Nigerian Navy says it has dismantled 12 illegal refineries and recovered 531500 litres of stolen and illegally refined petroleum products in the first quarter of 2026.
The operations were carried out under Operation Delta Sentinel, the new maritime security effort that replaced Operation Delta Sanity II in the Niger Delta.
Director of Naval Information Navy Captain Abiodun Folorunsho said troops also arrested 18 suspects linked to crude oil theft and related maritime crimes between January and March.
He explained that the operation includes enhanced surveillance, better intelligence sharing and a quarterly review system to keep pressure on oil thieves.
According to him, February recorded the highest haul with 360700 litres recovered, followed by 118800 litres in January and 52000 litres in March, showing continued activity by illegal refiners despite sustained patrols.
Key successes listed by the Navy include the seizure of 45000 litres of stolen products in Rivers State between January 20 and 23, the interception of an 18 tonne barge on February 13, the discovery of a 96000 litre illegal wellhead in Bayelsa State on February 23 and the recovery of 34000 litres of various products on March 5.
Further operations in March across Delta, Rivers and Bayelsa States, especially around Warri South West, Oteghele Creek, Ogbe Ijoh, Alakiri River and the Ogbia Egbema Ndoni axis, led to more crude and illegally refined products being seized.
About 45000 litres of crude oil were recovered at Alakiri River on March 14, while 44000 litres of diesel AGO were intercepted at Ogbologo on March 21, along with the arrest of eight suspects.
Overall, the Navy destroyed at least 12 illegal refinery sites, four storage facilities, three vessels or boats and two illegal wellhead or pipeline connections used to siphon crude oil.
Folorunsho noted a gradual drop in the estimated market value of recovered products, saying this suggests that sustained naval operations are making oil theft less profitable.
He said the Service remains committed to protecting Nigeria’s maritime domain, safeguarding vital oil and gas assets and helping to increase national oil production in line with the vision of the Chief of the Naval Staff Vice Admiral Idi Abbas.
The Navy will continue to run intelligence led missions and deepen cooperation with other security agencies to further weaken oil theft networks in the Nigerian maritime environment.
Operation Delta Sentinel was launched on January 13 2026 to strengthen security on the waterways and step up the fight against crude oil theft in the Niger Delta.
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