The Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Mr. Mele Kyari has said the establishment of a command-and-control center has aided the detection and destruction of over 5,686 Illegal Refinery (IR) sites and the removal of 4,480 Illegal Connections (ICs) from 2021 to the present
Kyari made this call while speaking as a Guest Lecturer during the 2024 Faculty Lecture titled, “Energy Security, Sustainability and Profitability in Nigeria: Advances, Challenges and Opportunities,” organized by the Faculty of Science of the Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile-Ife, Osun State, yesterday.
He said: “The centre provides livestreaming of surveillance data to security forces, contributing to the detection and destruction of the illegal refinery (IR) sites.
Acknowledging the severity of vandalism and oil theft, Kyari hinted at a strategic shift, focusing on increased products trucking and storage in underground tankages at NNPC filling stations nationwide.
He called for collaboration between the academia and the Oil & Gas Industry towards addressing the challenges of energy sufficiency and sustainability.
In his lecture, Kyari highlighted the important role academic communities, such as the prestigious OAU, play in safeguarding national energy security through research and collaboration with the industry.
While pointing out the challenges hindering energy security in Nigeria to include rapid population growth, pipeline vandalism, and crude oil theft, Kyari identified energy conservation, diversification, and efficiency measures as major avenues for enhancing energy security.
