The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has revealed that an illegal refinery uncovered in Ogere-Remo, Ogun State, had an underground storage tank with a capacity of more than 90,000 litres.
The authority’s Ogun State Coordinator, Dr. Atilola Akinyemi, disclosed this on Wednesday during a joint inspection of the facility with officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
Akinyemi said the facility occupied more than three hectares of land and operated without approval from any regulatory agency.
He explained that the site contained underground storage tanks, locally fabricated equipment, separation silos, heating systems, and cooling facilities designed to imitate a standard refinery.
He, however, warned against identifying the recovered products as diesel, also known as Automotive Gas Oil, until laboratory tests confirmed their composition.
According to him, releasing the unverified products into the market could damage vehicle engines and pose other risks. He added that all recovered materials had been confiscated pending laboratory analysis.
Meanwhile, EFCC Zonal Director, Lagos Directorate 2, Bawa Usman Kaltungo, said the commission uncovered the facility following intelligence provided by a Nigerian whistleblower.
He said the commission conducted surveillance to verify the information before launching an operation that led to the discovery. He added that investigations were ongoing to establish the ownership of the facility and identify those behind its operations.
Kaltungo also raised concerns about the immigration status of some foreign nationals linked to the investigation, saying some could not produce valid travel documents.
He disclosed that the commission was investigating companies allegedly connected to the operation, with some of their ultimate owners reportedly based in China.
The EFCC’s Director of Proceeds of Crime Management, Gbolahan Latona, warned that illegal refining activities could undermine legitimate investments in Nigeria’s petroleum industry and deprive the country of government revenue.
He said the commission would pursue the recovery of assets established to be proceeds of crime and ensure that suspects face prosecution where sufficient evidence is established.
