After 30 years, Ribadu says oil production to resume in Ogoniland soon

Nuhu Ribadu, national security adviser (NSA), says oil production will soon resume in Ogoniland after over 30 years of halting oil production.

Ribadu spoke on Thursday during a presentation at the All Progressives Congress (APC) national summit.

“Oil Production will soon resume in Ogoniland after over 30 years,” he said.

Highlighting achievements during the President Bola Tinubu administration, Ribadu said Nigeria’s oil production rose to an average of 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2025.

He also reported a 47 percent “drop in infractions”, noting that 1,978 illegal refineries have been dismantled.

The NSA said security operatives have also destroyed 3,849 dugout pits and 3,773 illegal cooking ovens so far.

“Operation DELTA SAFE, which involves all security services, is helping ensure regional security,” Ribadu said.

Tinubu had announced plans to resume oil production in Ogoniland.

In March, the Ogoni dialogue committee on the resumption of oil extraction in Ogoniland concluded its consultations and said it would soon submit its findings to the federal government.

Ogoniland has faced several oil spills since the 1990s, and significant environmental pollution and health risks for residents — leading to an eventual stoppage of drilling activities in 1993.

According to the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), despite the stoppage of crude drilling activities, in 2017, the Ogoni community was exposed to hydrocarbons daily through multiple routes.

According to reports, over two million barrels of oil polluted Ogoniland in 2,976 separate oil spills between 1976 and 1991.

In February 2019, the Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) confirmed an oil spill incident in Ebubu, Eleme LGA in Ogoniland.