Nigerian Navy burns down intercepted oil vessel with 350,000 tonnes of unlawfully refined diesel
The Navy of Nigeria has reportedly set ablaze an oil vessel dubbed “MV Cecilia” loaded with nearly 350,000 litres of robbed Automated Gas Oil or AGO, also famous as diesel, in Woji, Obio-Akpor Local Government Area based in Port Har- court metropolis, Rivers State in Nigeria, Marine Insight reports.
On 16 August, the Nigerian Navy Ship personnel, Pathfinder, Port Harcourt, intercepted the oil vessel. Three suspects have been arrested.
According to the Navy, the seized MV Cecelia Imo, a vessel with a storage capacity of over 350,000 barrels of crude, which ought to be a service boat, was converted to a storage tank for illegally refined products suspected to be AGO.
The Commander of Operation Delta Safe, who reportedly confirmed the incident, said the vessel was inactive for two years but was utilized as a storage tank for unlawfully refined items.
He said that the water tanks were converted into storage tanks for unlawful products and that the vessel hadn’t been to the sea in the past two years.
Ferrera was duly represented by Commodore Adedokun Siyanbade, the maritime component commander associated with the Joint Task Force dedicated to Operation Delta Safe, South-South.
Before it was finally put ablaze, two naval gunboats with experienced personnel had strategically escorted the impounded oil vessel alongside one tug boat.
They successfully managed to push the vessel to a safe location in the sea to burn it down. The procedure is understood to have lasted for about two hours, the report said.
