The Nigerian Navy has uncovered 132,000 litres of suspected stolen crude oil in 10 dugout pits in Rivers State’s Allison community.
The Nigerian Navy has uncovered approximately 132,000 litres of substance suspected to be stolen crude oil stored in 10 dugout pits in Allison community, Bonny Local Government Area of Rivers State.
The discovery was made on Thursday, October 22, 2026, by personnel of the Forward Operating Base (FOB) BONNY under Operation Delta Sentinel, following actionable intelligence on suspected illegal petroleum activities in the area.
The Director of Naval Information, Navy Captain Abiodun Folorunsho, disclosed this in a statement detailing the Navy’s ongoing operations against crude oil theft and illegal petroleum processing in the Niger Delta.
According to the statement, the discovery disrupted a potential storage point within the illegal petroleum supply chain.
“The Nigerian Navy has uncovered an estimated 132,000 litres of substance suspected to be stolen crude oil in Allison community, Bonny Local Government Area of Rivers State, disrupting a potential storage point within the illicit petroleum supply chain,” the statement read.
The Navy said the site could have been used to conceal stolen crude oil before its movement for unauthorised processing or distribution.
It added that the operation highlighted the importance of intelligence-led action in identifying concealed petroleum stockpiles and dismantling infrastructure supporting crude oil theft.
“The operation reinforces the importance of intelligence-led action in identifying concealed petroleum stockpiles and disrupting the infrastructure that enables crude oil theft and the unauthorised movement of petroleum products,” the statement added.
The Navy also urged community leaders, residents, traditional institutions and other stakeholders to report suspicious petroleum storage facilities, illegal refining activities and unauthorised movement of petroleum products to security agencies.
The latest discovery comes amid repeated naval operations targeting suspected illegal petroleum activities in the Niger Delta.
In September, naval personnel uncovered approximately 85,000 litres of suspected stolen crude oil in 16 concealed dugout pits in Allison community. The operation on September 29 followed the dismantling of an illegal refining camp in the area on September 22.
Earlier in October, the Navy discovered another suspected illegal refining site in Orashi Forest, Ogbogolo community, Ahoada West Local Government Area of Rivers State.
The October 15 operation led to the discovery of 23 dugout pits containing approximately 114,500 litres of suspected stolen crude oil and illegally refined petroleum products.
Of the recovered products, approximately 105,000 litres were suspected to be illegally refined Automotive Gas Oil, commonly known as diesel, while 9,500 litres were suspected to be stolen crude oil.
The operations come as the Federal Government intensifies efforts to tackle crude oil theft, pipeline vandalism and illegal refining across the country.
On October 12, 2026, the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, unveiled a new security framework for protecting critical oil and gas infrastructure and improving coordination among agencies responsible for securing petroleum assets.
Known as the Standard Operating Procedure for the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry-Wide Security Architecture, the framework is designed to harmonise security operations, clarify institutional responsibilities and strengthen collaboration among government security agencies, private surveillance contractors and petroleum operators.
At the unveiling, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited disclosed that coordinated security operations had resulted in the deactivation of more than 10,000 illegal refineries and refining sites, the removal of nearly 7,000 illegal pipeline connections and the arrest of more than 3,700 suspects.