The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) announced today that it has restored full pipeline availability, the first in two decades, marking a major step in its campaign against crude theft and vandalism.
NNPC’s chief executive, Bashir Ojulari, told delegates at the African Petroleum Producers’ Organisation (APPO) forum in Accra that the milestone has boosted confidence in the resilience of Nigeria’s oil and gas infrastructure. Company reports since April show upstream pipelines consistently running above 96 percent availability.
Sabotage and Theft Decline
Nigeria has battled sabotage and crude theft for years, losing revenue and driving international majors off onshore fields. Data from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) show crude losses dropped to about 10,000 barrels per day (b/d) between January and July 2025. Losses averaged 11,000 b/d in 2024 and 12,000 b/d in 2023. In 2021, theft peaked at nearly 103,000 b/d, the highest in more than two decades.
Oil Producers Record Higher Uptime
Seplat Energy confirmed stronger performance in its half-year 2025 update. The London-listed company recorded 90 percent uptime on the Amukpe–Escravos and Trans-Forcados pipelines in the western Niger Delta, although leak repairs and a 21-day maintenance shutdown on Trans-Escravos reduced overall output. In the eastern Delta, Seplat achieved 82 percent availability on the Trans-Niger pipeline to the Bonny terminal, with a 10-day shutdown scheduled for the third quarter.
Independent producer Heirs Energies also reported significant progress. After acquiring a 45 percent stake in OML 17 in 2021, the firm cut losses from as high as 97 percent of production to almost none. Current output stands at around 53,000 b/d, more than double the level when it assumed operatorship from Shell.
Security Collaboration Drives Gains
Ojulari credited the turnaround to stronger collaboration between security forces, operators, and host communities. He said Nigeria plans to share this security framework with other African oil producers. Niger, for example, continues to face militant attacks along its 2,000km Agadem–Seme export line, which carries Meleck crude to Benin.