By KENNEDY SHEYIN

The Nigerian Navy says it has uncovered nine illegal refining sites comprising 23 dugout pits in Bonny Local Government Area of Rivers.

This was contained in an operational report by the Director of Naval Information, Capt. Abiodun Folorunsho, on Tuesday in Abuja.

Folorunsho said that the sites were uncovered during an operation carried out by personnel of Forward Operating Base (FOB) BONNY under Operation DELTA SENTINEL.

According to him, during the operation, personnel uncovered nine illegal refining sites comprising 23 dugout pits, with 18 of the pits containing an estimated 104,000 litres of products suspected to be stolen crude oil.

“Five newly excavated pits, prepared for imminent use, were also found and neutralised before they could become operational.”

He added that with the development, navy had prevented the expansion of illegal refining network in the locality.

“The operation dealt another major setback to crude oil theft syndicates and further reinforced the service’s resolve to safeguard Nigeria’s critical oil and gas infrastructure.

“Following actionable intelligence, personnel targeted criminal infrastructure concealed within the Wakama/Bolo and Aworkiri communities.

“The operation denied economic saboteurs the opportunity to activate new refining locations and sustain illicit petroleum production,” he said.

The naval director of information revealed that eight locally fabricated refining pots and three large storage tanks were recovered, further disrupting the criminal network’s refining capability.

“All illegal facilities and recovered products were handled in accordance with extant anti-crude oil theft procedures.

“The latest success highlights the Nigerian navy’s determination not only to disrupt illegal refining activities, but also prevent criminal networks from rebuilding their infrastructure.

“By targeting both active and emerging illegal refining hubs, the service continues to weaken the operational resilience of crude oil theft syndicates and protecting Nigeria’s economic interests”, he further said.

The naval spokesperson reaffirmed the navy’s commitment to sustaining intelligence-driven operations to dismantle criminal logistics, protect strategic national assets, and preserve the integrity of the nation’s oil and gas sector. (NAN)

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