October 15, (THEWILL) – An illegal pipeline connected to a 48-inch Trans Forcados Export Trunk line has been uncovered by Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited (TSSNL) in Delta State.
Tantita Security is a surveillance company operated by an ex-militant leader in the Niger Delta, Government Ekpemupolo, popularly known as Tompolo.
The pipeline was discovered near a military post in the Burutu Local Government Area of Delta State.
The development came a few days after the surveillance team uncovered an illegal 4-kilometre pipeline connected from the Trans Escravos line into the sea.
Meanwhile, the Oil Spill Victims Initiative (OSPIVV) has threatened to sue the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) and Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) over the illegal pipeline used by criminals to steal the country’s crude oil.
The Executive Director of OSPIVV, Prince Harrison Jalla, told newsmen on Saturday, that the illegal pipeline connected to the trunk line through an abandoned pipeline by the Nigerians Agip Oil Company Limited, (NAOC), was linked to a location in the high sea where criminals load crude oil into vessels and sell overseas.
He said: “There are many reports of crude oil theft in the Niger Delta, but we are particularly interested in the theft of crude oil from the Forcados Terminal.
“They have been stealing our national heritage for the past nine years and no one can say for sure where it began or where it ended. We want to start by holding the NNPCL and SPDC accountable for the oil theft and the atrocities committed against the Niger Delta people.
“We will take on the NNPCL and SPDC. We have already briefed our solicitors to sue. So many International Oil Companies have to account for this heist, but we want to start with the Shell Group because there is no way they could pipe crude oil from those terminals without the involvement of those running the terminal.
“We do not know if other areas where pipelines traverse the region are involved. We can now see there is a massive approach to stealing crude oil in the Niger Delta region. Therefore, we are going to court. The two organizations should let the court know what they know about the massive oil heists since 2003.
“If we have a court where everyone recounts what they know, it is fair and good for us. We want to take them to a proper court of competent jurisdiction to unravel what is happening in the trunk lines.
“Our interest is to unravel what has been happening in the oil sector, so whether they claim it at Forcados Terminal is not our business. Our concern is that some people have perpetrated the crime of massive oil theft and the resources pocketed by those we do not know. The international community and IOCs are involved.”
