Quote: “This process of “bunkering” is what has given the business of oil-theft in Nigeria its common name. Aerial and satellite photography confirm the loading of hundreds of barges with oil each day. The barge cargoes transfer to smaller tankers, many of which foreigners operate under false names and registrations. U.S., U.K., and Lebanese citizens participate in this trade.”

http://www.punchng.com/Articl.aspx?theartic=Art20110907520215

By Our correspondent
Wednesday, 7 Sep 2011

New United States Government cables published by whistleblower, WikiLeaks, have identified a former first lady (names withheld), unnamed highly placed Nigerians, senior military officers, Lebanese, Iranian, British and American businessmen as oil thieves. The cables claim that they all played active roles in the illegal bunkering business in the Niger Delta.

The cables also put the huge loss that the country sustained from illegal bunkering at about 91million barrels of oil per annum.

The three cables containing the revelations were written by US diplomats in Abuja and Lagos and sent to their home governments between November 2004 and November 2009.

The first cable is titled, “Niger Delta: Guns and thugs rule the land”, the second, “Captain Crusader versus bunkering bandits”; and the third, “The fundamentals of illegal oil bunkering in Nigeria.”

The cables detail the security, political, and humanitarian situation in the Niger Delta based on field visits by US political and economic officers and the interviews they conducted with military officers and key players in the illegal business.

One of the cables says, “Illegal oil bunkering runs rampant in the region. Mission reporting has linked shady oil deals to XYZ (a former first lady). Ijaw and Itsekiri youths and elders accuse unnamed high-ranking politicians in Abuja. Unconfirmed reports claim that Lebanese nationals possibly funding the terrorist groups Hamas and Hizbollah, the Russian Mafia, and drug cartels are (also) involved.”

In another cable, a senior military officer who spoke to the Americans likened illegal oil bunkering in Nigeria to the drug trade in Colombia.

While describing how illegal bunkerers operate, one of the cables says, “A tanker (mother ship) anchors approximately 50 miles offshore during daylight to avoid being spotted by Navy coastal patrols. Arrangements are made for villagers to tap into the Delta’s vast network of pipelines, usually in the swamps, and fill small oil barges. At nightfall the mother ship moves closer to shore, where the barges are pulled alongside and the crude is transferred, allowing the tanker to slip away without detection.

“This process of “bunkering” is what has given the business of oil-theft in Nigeria its common name. Aerial and satellite photography confirm the loading of hundreds of barges with oil each day. The barge cargoes transfer to smaller tankers, many of which foreigners operate under false names and registrations. U.S., U.K., and Lebanese citizens participate in this trade.”

One of the key players in the region who also spoke to the Americans said that “powerful men from Abuja” hired locals who worked with oil company employees, security forces and militants to carry out the illegal trade.

According to the cable, “Higher ranking military officers or civilian leaders protected barges of illegal oil against attacks by militants before the amnesty by “settling” (paying) the militants in advance. Operators of tankers and tanker terminals, including employees of major international oil companies and local contractors, allegedly colluded in many illegal transactions.”

The cables claim that Nigeria loses billions per year to oil theft, lamenting that individuals benefitting from the sale of stolen oil do not re-invest in oil exploration or production.

One says, “While some of the revenues may filter down to inhabitants by way of pay-offs, the bulk of earnings are diverted outside the country into the international bank accounts of the beneficiaries.

“Oil theft siphons off the “life-blood” of the Nigerian economy for private gain before taxation or crediting to the national account. Various experts have estimated the volume of oil theft at between 100,000 and 250,000 barrels per day or as much as 91 million barrels per year. This amounts to billions of dollars in lost revenue for the Nigerian treasury every year, regardless of the price of oil on any given day. (NB: At current oil prices the annual revenue loss is between $2.9 and $7.3 billion. END NOTE.)”zzzzzzz

The diplomats who filed the cables wrote that though government officials had repeatedly requested U.S. assistance to prevent bunkering, it was a problem that Nigeria could and should solve.

“The reality, however, is that most oil bunkering is not a global phenomenon readily susceptible to international deterrence, but a largely Nigerian development that requires domestic resolution. No other, major oil-producing country, to our knowledge, loses as much revenue from illicit oil bunkering as Nigeria, largely because the political elite, militants, and communities profit from such operations. Tackling this problem will require resolute political will from many sectors of Nigerian society.”

We need the name of the 1st lady is it Stella,Mariam or Turai(this chic was implicated in the last wikileaks anyway)

American hypocrisy staring us in the face once again. So 'bunkering' is a Nigerian problem that should be solved by Nigeria? They forgot to tell us just how much of those illegal oil finds its way into the US and its effect on a benefitting economy. These guys are just happy to sitback and watch the illegal oil flow because they benefit from it yet here they are trying to justify their inaction by saying its a 'Nigerian problem' like they arent sending troops and Feds into Mexico and Colombia to battle drug cartels.

Yawns - na today ?!

lari03:

We need the name of the 1st lady is it Stella,Mariam or Turai(this chic was implicated in the last wikileaks anyway)

Illegal oil bunkering runs rampant in the region.  Mission reporting has linked shady oil deals to First Lady  Stella Obasanjo (Ref G). Ijaw and Itsekiri youths and elders  accuse unnamed high-ranking politicians in Abuja, while  unconfirmed reports claim that Lebanese nationals possibly  funding the terrorist groups Hamas and Hizbollah, the Russian  Mafia, and drug cartels are involved (Refs B and H).

Source: http://www.cablegatesearch.net/cable.php?id=04LAGOS1204

thanks,let me go 2 the site myself.

wesley80:

American hypocrisy staring us in the face once again. So 'bunkering' is a Nigerian problem that should be solved by Nigeria? They forgot to tell us just how much of those illegal oil finds its way into the US and its effect on a benefitting economy. These guys are just happy to sitback and watch the illegal oil flow because they benefit from it yet here they are trying to justify their inaction by saying its a 'Nigerian problem' like they arent sending troops and Feds into Mexico and Colombia to battle drug cartels.

So in your view the Americans should send troops to tackle this or send our government money the way they send to the Colombian and Mexican and governments to fight drugs. And if you were the US government you would place this on the same scale as the illegal drugs being peddled on American streets and destroying the lives of that country's young people. Interesting.

it is not only the first Lady but the so called Nigeria elites in oil sector are involved in this dirty deal.

MyJoe:

So in your view the Americans should send troops to tackle this or send our government money the way they send to the Colombian and Mexican and governments to fight drugs. And if you were the US government you would place this on the same scale as the illegal drugs being peddled on American streets and destroying the lives of that country's young people. Interesting.

I'm sure you read this part of the cable;

koruji:


The diplomats who filed the cables wrote that though government officials had repeatedly requested U.S. assistance to prevent bunkering, it was a problem that Nigeria could and should solve.

The US govt has the wherewithal to stop the bunkering overnight but Nigeria does not (lets agree for the sake of simplicity that the will isnt there), all it takes is to cut the demand end by putting some of those bunkering tankers out of biz and the problem is solved, but why wont they do so even after - by their own admission- the Nigerian govt had requested for assistance several times? You think its because they think its a Nigerian problem? well so is Boko Haram and so are the drug cartels in Latin America.

Blame the US? Seriously dem say "Oyinbo wu agbara" but I never knew some took it literally. US has wherewithal to end Nigeria's bunkering overnight

^^^ Is that you laughing? hmmmn, always knew your mouth was bigger than your head!

wesley80:

I'm sure you read this part of the cable;

The US govt has the wherewithal to stop the bunkering overnight but Nigeria does not (lets agree for the sake of simplicity that the will isnt there), all it takes is to cut the demand end by putting some of those bunkering tankers out of biz and the problem is solved, but why wont they do so even after - by their own admission- the Nigerian govt had requested for assistance several times? You think its because they think its a Nigerian problem? well so is Boko Haram and so are the drug cartels in Latin America.

No, the US government does not have the wherewithal to end this overnight. You made a comparison with the drug problem - has the US government been able to solve that one? No. They commit a lot of resources to that war yet it is still there. If they add this one to their plate they will have to commit a lot of resources to it and since it doesn't score high on their of order of national priorities, why should they do for Nigeria?

And maybe I missed it, but the article does not say anything about all the stolen oil ending up in the US. This problem is like terrorism - our local bad guys have invited low life organised criminals from all over the world and there is a thriving business going on. Do you really think that if they are stopped from selling in the US they will throw their hands in the air and close shop, seeing that there are no other places to sell their loot in the world?

The only people that can solve this problem is the Nigerian government. Others can help, yes, but there is so much they can do. Look at common money laundering - how many people has the UK jailed for stealing Nigerian money? How many has Nigeria itself jailed? Ibori was larger than life here; they allowed to him to escape, yet he was arrested in Dubai like the common criminal he is and was subsequently shipped to the UK where he is facing trial like the common criminal he is. If this state of affairs continue will corrupt people simply not avoid the UK and Dubai in future and do their thing in Nigeria and other corruption-friendly countries? Is it not clear then that the only people who can fight corruption in Nigeria in a sustained manner are the Nigerians themselves?

^^^you try ooo . . .

@Myjoe,
Good points - perhaps.

MyJoe:

No, the US government does not have the wherewithal to end this overnight. You made a comparison with the drug problem - has the US government been able to solve that one? No. They commit a lot of resources to that war yet it is still there. If they add this one to their plate they will have to commit a lot of resources to it and since it doesn't score high on their of order of national priorities, why should they do for Nigeria?

Yes the US govt can end illegal bunkery overnight if it wants to, crude oil is not stuff you can conceal or ask a fisherman to smuggle in on your behalf (we r talking abt 100,000 to 200000 barrels here) so you really cant draw parallels with the drugs trade. The problem is there is a thriving mkt for illegal crude and the West is happy to see it thrive because it suits them and like u said, "it doesn't score high on their order of national priorities" (why should it) How long did it take to label certain diamonds as "conflict diamonds" and block their trade? How long did it take for the US to send in the FBI to assist in BH investigations? Why is bunkery the one issue that is a local problem that should be tackled solely by Nigeria? I'm sure u've never been to the creeks of the Niger Delta else u wld understand it is "virtually impossible" for our ill equipped military to police those pipelines without hi-tech equipments. The only solution that I can see is blocking the demand and if u say the US cant do that then i wonder who u think can.

Blame the US? Seriously dem say "Oyinbo wu agbara" but I never knew some took it literally. US has wherewithal to end Nigeria's bunkering overnight 

^^^ You seem particularly restless today what's the problem? No bone in the bin today?

wesley80:

@Myjoe,
Good points - perhaps.

Yes the US govt can end illegal bunkery overnight if it wants to, crude oil is not stuff you can conceal or ask a fisherman to smuggle in on your behalf (we r talking abt 100,000 to 200000 barrels here) so you really cant draw parallels with the drugs trade. The problem is there is a thriving mkt for illegal crude and the West is happy to see it thrive because it suits them and like u said, "it doesn't score high on their order of national priorities" (why should it) How long did it take to label certain diamonds as "conflict diamonds" and block their trade? How long did it take for the US to send in the FBI to assist in BH investigations? Why is bunkery the one issue that is a local problem that should be tackled solely by Nigeria? I'm sure u've never been to the creeks of the Niger Delta else u wld understand it is "virtually impossible" for our ill equipped military to police those pipelines without hi-tech equipments. The only solution that I can see is blocking the demand and if u say the US cant do that then i wonder who u think can.

You maintain that the US gains somehow from illegal crude, how did you come about such an observation? Instead of calling for the strengthening of our military so they can tackle this menace properly you lay it the feet of the Americans to come an clean up our mess. Why do we like blaming everything on the Americans?

@Bawss,
I'm not blaming the US but only responding to an assertion by the ambassador that crude theft is a Nigerian problem that should be handled by Nigeria. In a volatile mkt as the crude mkt that constantly swings to the tune of the forces of demand and supply, you'd find it impossible to prove the US doesnt benefit from crude theft. We are talking abt 200k barrels a day here! To put it in context, Countries like Ghana, Uganda and Sleone are celebrated as oil producing countries for producing much less than that.
There is an army of people willing to risk their lives in stealing crude and all they get is a fraction of the pay, the big players are those operating the huge tankers and thats why I maintain that any true solution has to be curbing the demand, and who better to assist in doing that? So why wont they? Its a Nigerian problem? Yeah right!

wesley80:

@Myjoe,
Good points - perhaps.

Yes the US govt can end illegal bunkery overnight if it wants to, crude oil is not stuff you can conceal or ask a fisherman to smuggle in on your behalf (we r talking abt 100,000 to 200000 barrels here) so you really cant draw parallels with the drugs trade. The problem is there is a thriving mkt for illegal crude and the West is happy to see it thrive because it suits them and like u said, "it doesn't score high on their order of national priorities" (why should it) How long did it take to label certain diamonds as "conflict diamonds" and block their trade? How long did it take for the US to send in the FBI to assist in BH investigations? Why is bunkery the one issue that is a local problem that should be tackled solely by Nigeria? I'm sure u've never been to the creeks of the Niger Delta else u wld understand it is "virtually impossible" for our ill equipped military to police those pipelines without hi-tech equipments. The only solution that I can see is blocking the demand and if u say the US cant do that then i wonder who u think can.

You credit the Americans with too much power. Yes, oil is not drugs you can keep in your underpants but are you aware of what is going on at the Gulf of Aden where the navies of the world, including those of the US and the UK, are trying with minimal success to stop Somali pirates?

You acknowledge that Nigerian bunkering is not as important to the US as drugs and terrorism (actually, it's not an issue at all), can you explain why they should spend taxpayers' money on a matter that is not important to them? If your argument is that the US ought to enforce its own laws and stop stolen items from being stolen in its territory, of course, it should. But you have to show that this is the crux of this problem. For one thing, we don't know that the bulk of the oil being stolen from Nigeria is being sold in the US - I would be surprised if it is. If it is, that is a law enforcement problem and someone should be beating down the doors of the FBI and presenting them with evidence or giving them tips. Even if the US stops the oil from being sold in its territory, the Nigerian bastards and their foreign collaborators will simply expand other markets.

The solution lies in Nigeria. Our law enforcement agents should stop oil from being stolen from here. If they can't, too bad.

The question you should ask yourself is, if American diplomats in Nigeria know that a first lady was involved in bunkering, did the SSS, the EFCC, the Navy and Police know? If they didn't, why? If they did, did they inform the President? If they did that, what became of the memo or whatever they sent to him? You are right about our security agencies being ill-equipped to handle this problem, but being ill-equipped is just a convenient subterfuge. What does it take to get equipment other than to place order for them? Or is it that we have no money to buy a few boats and night vision equipment and special weapons to save the country between 2 and 7 billion dollars a year? In matters of this nature, our security agencies are the weakest link in our security. Read that article again. Generals and admirals are involved in this business. As are first ladies, ministers, traditional rulers, militants and villagers. I am at a loss as to how the Americans are supposed to help us.