The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority has disclosed that an illegal refinery uncovered in Ogere Remo, Ikenne Local Government Area of Ogun State, operated on more than three hectares of land and had an underground storage tank with a capacity exceeding 90,000 litres.
The State Coordinator of the NMDPRA, Dr Atilola Akinyemi, made the disclosure on Wednesday during a joint inspection of the facility by officials of the authority and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission.
Akinyemi said intelligence gathering played a crucial role in uncovering the operation, noting that the facility was operating without approval from any regulatory agency.
He described the installation as a crude and illegal operation, stressing that it did not meet the standards required of a recognised petroleum refinery.
According to him, the discovery was similar to illegal refining activities previously recorded in the Niger Delta during the 1990s and early 2000s.
The NMDPRA coordinator disclosed that the facility contained underground storage tanks, locally fabricated tanks, separation silos, underground heating systems and water hydrants used for cooling.
He added that the operators appeared to possess technical expertise, having designed the installation to imitate a conventional refinery while deliberately avoiding regulatory requirements.
Akinyemi, however, cautioned against identifying the recovered petroleum products as diesel, also known as Automotive Gas Oil, without conducting laboratory tests to establish their actual composition.
He warned that releasing the products into the market without proper verification could expose vehicles and automobile engines to serious damage.
The coordinator said all recovered products and materials had been confiscated and placed under the custody of the Federal Government pending laboratory analysis and further investigations.
He assured that the authority would not tolerate illegal refining activities in Ogun State, adding that it would strengthen its collaboration with security agencies to identify and dismantle similar operations.
Meanwhile, the EFCC Zonal Director, Lagos Zonal Directorate 2, Bawa Usman Kaltungo, said the commission uncovered the facility following information supplied by a Nigerian whistleblower.
Kaltungo explained that the commission first conducted surveillance to verify the intelligence before launching a sting operation that led to the discovery.
He said the information was received following an appeal by the EFCC Chairman, who had encouraged Nigerians to report suspicious activities through the commission’s whistleblowing policy.
According to him, the commission had also identified another suspected location that was being investigated.
The EFCC official expressed concern over the immigration status of some foreign nationals arrested in connection with the operation, disclosing that some could not produce their passports while others allegedly had visas that expired about three months earlier.
He added that investigations were ongoing to establish the ownership structure of companies allegedly linked to the illegal operation, noting that some of their ultimate owners were based in China.
Also speaking, the Director of the Department of Proceeds of Crime Management at the EFCC, Gbolahan Latona, warned that illegal petroleum operations could undermine legitimate investments in Nigeria’s refining industry and deprive the government of revenue.
Latona said the commission would ensure that assets established to be proceeds of crime were recovered and put to productive use in accordance with the law.
He cited the conversion of Nok University, following its forfeiture to the Federal Government, into the Federal University of Applied Sciences, Kachia, as an example of the commission’s asset recovery and social reuse initiative.
He added that the facility discovered in Ogun State could also be subjected to appropriate recovery and reuse procedures, depending on the outcome of investigations and relevant legal processes.
Latona warned that illegal operators would not be allowed to undermine investments by legitimate players in the petroleum industry, particularly major domestic refining projects.
He assured that the suspects would be prosecuted if sufficient evidence was established against them, adding that the commission would investigate individuals and interests allegedly financing the operation from outside Nigeria.
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