The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has announced a significant reduction in crude oil theft within the country.
Oil theft has dropped from over 108,000 barrels per day (bpd) in the first quarter of 2022 to roughly 5,000 bpd by the end of 2024, according to Gbenga Komolafe, Chief Executive of NUPRC.
This decrease is due to the government’s kinetic and non-kinetic initiatives, which have resulted in a consistent rise in oil output.
As of January 2025, production levels had increased to an average of 1.75 million barrels per day, after dropping to 1.1 million barrels per day in 2022 due to theft and vandalism.
The implementation of cutting-edge surveillance systems, improved security measures, and community cooperation are all part of the government’s attempts to stop oil theft.
These initiatives seek to improve economic stability and protect the nation’s resources.
The NUPRC has set a lofty goal to boost oil production by an extra 1 million barrels per day by December 2026. This objective is a component of the Project 1 MMBOPD project, which aims to improve cooperation between financiers, operators, service providers, and host communities to attain sustainable growth in the oil industry.