The Tinubu Media Support Group (TMSG) has welcomed the recent revelation that the crude oil theft from pipelines leading to external terminals has been halted, describing it as a good development for the oil industry.
The group also sees it as a major boost to efforts by the President Bola Tinubu administration to ramp up daily oil production and exports.
In a statement signed by its Chairman Emeka Nwankpa and Secretary Dapo Okubanjo, TMSG said that the new development will put Nigeria on the path to achieving its ambitious 2026 target of 2.5 million barrels per day (bpd) crude production.
The statement read in part, “We see the recent revelation by the Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Mr. Bayo Ojulari, as one of the best and most inspiring developments in the nation’s critical oil sector in recent years.
”This is because oil theft has been a major concern in a sector that is known to deliver the lion’s share of Nigeria’s foreign exchange earnings.
”Things were so bad at a point, as enumerated by the NNPCL’s helmsman, that Nigeria was barely able to move 30 per cent of its daily crude production through the pipelines to the export terminals. This is aside from the incessant sabotage of oil infrastructure in oil-producing areas.
”But today, things appear different based on the revelation that coordinated efforts by defence agencies and private security contractors have nearly eliminated threats to oil exports to the extent that the terminals are receiving close to 100% supplies.
”For us, it’s a validation of ongoing efforts by the President Bola Tinubu administration to make the oil and gas sector not only secure and conducive to operations, but also attractive to investors.
”What this means is that it will now be easier for the country to meet its daily production target of 2.5 million bpd, having consistently hit its OPEC quota of 1.7 million bpd this year.
”We also see it as a boost to recent reforms introduced by the President to unlock more investments in the oil and gas sector that recorded massive foreign investment commitments of about $16 billion in 2024 alone.”
The group added that it is also a good development that the general security situation in the Niger Delta region has improved considerably in the last few years showing clear indications of more positive prospects for the national economy in the years ahead.
End.