Reports have it that Nigeria loses trillions of naira to crude oil theft and pipeline vandalism annually, a development that made the government consider virtual means of transporting the commodity.
1st April 2024 08:02 AM 
A new presentation by the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission on “Stability in the Nigerian Energy Sector: Integrated Strategies for Infrastructure, Transportation and Security,” obtained by reporters in Abuja showed that The Federal Government has adopted a virtual means of evacuation of crude oil.
The new evacuation style is designed to involve the utilisation of barges and trucks for the transportation of crude from the point of production to injection/storage points for eventual transportation to export terminals.
The Federal Government in the presentation said the Alternative Crude Oil Evacuation Systems was implemented to avoid production deferment, losses, and other undesirable consequences as a result of pipeline disruption and outages.
In October 2023, the Senate ordered a comprehensive probe into the activities of security forces and organised groups employing sophisticated techniques to steal crude oil in the country.
The report stated that the decision was prompted by a motion put forth by Senator Ned Nwoko (PDP, Delta North), who reeled out data on what Nigeria lost to pipeline vandalism and oil bunkering.
Nwoko had pointed out that Nigeria lost N2.3tn to oil theft in 2023 alone.
