Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation says the country is currently losing an average of 200,000 barrels of crude oil daily.
Brent, the oil against which Nigeria’s crude is priced, was $66.75 per barrel on Wednesday, while the official exchange rate of the dollar stood at 379/$.
From the above figures, it showed that the country was losing about N151.79bn in 30 days, going by the 200,000 barrels of crude oil being lost daily, as revealed by NNPC.
NNPC Group Managing Director, Mele Kyari, disclosed the volume of crude oil lost daily in Nigeria during a meeting with the Chief of Defence Staff, Major General Lucky Irabor.
The corporation’s group spokesperson, Kennie Obateru, quoted Kyari in a statement in Abuja as saying, “We have two sets of losses, one coming from our products and the other coming from crude oil.
“In terms of crude losses, it is still going on. On the average, we are losing 200,000 barrels of crude every day.”
In his response, Irabor assured that he would mobilise the military to provide maximum security for the nation’s oil and gas assets.
“I am delighted that you made this effort, and I tell you that the Armed Forces of Nigeria will collaborate with you to protect NNPC’s assets,” he said.
The CDS acknowledged the role of the oil and gas sector to the economy and stated that there was need for collaboration between the NNPC and the Armed Forces to protect oil and gas facilities.
“It is my intention to cooperate maximally with you and to give necessary instructions to all officers in the Armed Forces,” he said.