The Nigerian Navy says it has intensified its crackdown on crude oil theft, recording 183 successful operations under Operation Delta Sentinel in the first quarter of 2026, leading to the recovery of 531,500 litres of illegally refined petroleum products and the arrest of 18 suspects linked to oil theft and other maritime offences.
The Navy also destroyed 12 illegal refinery sites, four storage facilities, three vessels or boats, and two illegal wellhead or pipeline connections during the operations.
Director of Naval Information, Navy Captain Abiodun Folorunsho, said the operation, which replaced Operation Delta Sanity II, features stronger surveillance, improved intelligence gathering, and a quarterly review structure, with an initial one-year mandate.
According to him, February recorded the highest volume of recoveries with 360,700 litres, followed by 118,800 litres in January and 52,000 litres in March, showing continued pressure on illegal oil activities.
Among the major breakthroughs were the seizure of 45,000 litres of stolen products in Rivers State between January 20 and 23, the interception of an 18-tonne barge on February 13, the discovery of a 96,000-litre illegal wellhead in Bayelsa State on February 23, and the recovery of 34,000 litres of petroleum products on March 5.
Folorunsho said March operations also reflected intensified enforcement across Delta, Rivers and Bayelsa states, with major recoveries made in Warri South-West, Oteghele Creek, Ogbe-Ijoh, Alakiri River, and the Ogbia/Egbema/Ndoni axis.
He noted that about 45,000 litres of crude oil were recovered at Alakiri River on March 14, while 44,000 litres of AGO were intercepted at Ogbologo on March 21, alongside the arrest of eight suspects.
He added that several other raids uncovered between 4,000 and 21,000 litres of stolen products per location, while illegal reservoirs, wellheads and pipeline connections used for siphoning crude were dismantled.
The Navy said the sustained operations are weakening the profitability of oil theft networks and reaffirmed its commitment to protecting Nigeria’s maritime assets and boosting oil production in line with national economic goals.