The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited and the Petroleum Training Institute (PTI) are currently looking forward to installing anti-theft integrated monitoring systems on pipelines.
The monitoring systems are expected to checkmate the increasing crude oil theft in the country.
Speaking at the PTI’s 50th Anniversary, the institute’s Principal/Chief Executive, Henry Adimula, said the training centre had developed an oil anti-theft integrated monitoring system to effectively monitor pipelines.
Adimula, who said this was one of the recent innovations of the PTI, stated, “We’ve produced an oil anti-theft integrated monitoring system for pipeline monitoring, and an air quality monitoring systems.
“We have Al’s and have developed a corrosion robot for early detection of localised corrosion and prevent loss of integrity of the facilities, among others.”
Expressing satisfaction at the innovation, the Group Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of NNPC, Mele Kyari said the state-owned oil and gas company was pleased to hear what the institute had done in terms of pipeline monitoring.
He then told the PTI that NNPC would work with the institute to deploy the technology to further boost the monitoring of NNPC’s pipelines with a view to addressing crude oil theft in Nigeria.
“We need to produce oil and gas. We are trying to address the massive oil theft. We will overcome it, but clearly, it is something we also need to work together to resolve.
“That is why I’m happy to hear the PTI coming up with solutions that will be able to monitor pipelines,” the NNPC chief added.
Why NNPC is concerned about oil theft
In 2022 Q1, NNPC released data that showed that Nigeria was losing about 250, 000 barrels per day of crude oil to theft. This did not only bring the total loss to about $1.5 billion daily but has consequently become the possible biggest threat to national development and the environment.
Just as economic woes are exacerbating Nigeria, oil theft by criminal networks and corrupt public officeholders in the country is ravaging the economy.
