Maritime Security and Safety
NASS Endorses Tantita Security Contract, Dismisses Petitions Over Pipeline Surveillance
NASS Endorses Tantita Security Contract, Dismisses Petitions Over Pipeline Surveillance
By Okeoghene Onoriobe
Nigeria’s National Assembly has thrown its weight behind the continued engagement of Tantita Security Services Nigeria Limited for pipeline surveillance operations, with lawmakers at a joint Senate and House of Representatives roundtable passing a unanimous vote of confidence in the company.
The joint session, convened by the Senate and House of Representatives Committees on Petroleum Resources, equally dismissed all petitions filed against Tantita’s pipeline surveillance contract following a motion moved by the Chairman of the House Committee on Petroleum Resources (Midstream), Hon. Henry Okojie.
Okojie argued that Tantita, in collaboration with relevant security agencies, had recorded considerable achievements in safeguarding the nation’s petroleum assets, translating into improved oil revenues for the country.
The endorsement followed extensive deliberations at the one-day parliamentary roundtable on the state of pipeline security and Nigeria’s battle against crude oil theft, where legislators reviewed submissions from wide-ranging stakeholders across the oil and gas sector. Data presented at the session pointed to increased crude oil output and a marked reduction in pipeline vandalism since Tantita’s engagement commenced.
Declaring the event open, Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rep. Abbas Tajudeen, noted that despite simmering tensions in the Middle East and the lingering Russia-Ukraine conflict, crude oil remains the world’s largest source of primary energy — particularly in the transport sector, where it still powers 95 per cent of all vehicles, planes and ships.
The Speaker disclosed that the security gains from enhanced pipeline surveillance have helped push Nigeria’s crude oil production to approximately 1.8 million barrels per day, a significant recovery from previous lows triggered by rampant oil theft. He recalled that at the height of the crisis, production collapsed sharply, costing the country billions of dollars in lost revenue and damaging Nigeria’s reputation as a dependable oil producer.
“Nigeria previously lost between 10 and 30 per cent of its crude oil output to theft annually,” Tajudeen said, adding that illegal tapping points had since been largely dismantled while crude deliveries to export terminals had improved markedly.
Beyond production gains, the Speaker highlighted the contract’s social dividend, noting that the surveillance arrangement had generated employment for thousands of Niger Delta youths, many of whom were formerly involved in agitation, offering them alternative livelihoods while strengthening community participation in the protection of oil infrastructure.
He cited legislative backing for the arrangement, including the Petroleum Production and Distribution (Anti-Sabotage) Act and reforms under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), as having reinforced enforcement against vandalism and deepened sector governance. He also pointed to the role of the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) and the Host Community Development Trust under the PIA, which mandates corporate responsibility and gives host communities a financial stake in protecting oil assets.
The Chairman of the House Committee on Petroleum Resources (Downstream), Ikenga Ugochinyere, said the panel subjected every petition and complaint to thorough scrutiny but found no credible basis to sustain any of the claims.
“There is no credible evidence to sustain any of the allegations. Accordingly, all complaints against Tantita are hereby dismissed,” Ugochinyere declared.
His Senate counterpart, Chairman of the Senate Committee on Petroleum Resources (Downstream), Agom Jarigbe, urged policy consistency, warning that disrupting a framework already delivering results would be counterproductive.
“Disrupting a system that is already delivering results would be counterproductive. Our responsibility is to ensure stability,” Jarigbe said.
Odianosen Okojie also cautioned against moves to fragment the surveillance contract, warning that such a step could weaken operational coordination and erode accountability. “We must strengthen what works, not dilute it. Nigeria’s economic security depends on disciplined execution,” he said.
Senior government officials at the session, including Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, and the Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Bayo Ojulari, also acknowledged the improvements recorded under the current arrangement.
Ojulari told the meeting that national crude oil production had grown from a historic low of 960,000 barrels per day in 2022 to an average of 1.71 million barrels per day, reaching a peak of 1.84 million barrels per day in 2025 — a turnaround he attributed to an integrated energy security model deployed across the Niger Delta pipeline network.
He described the success as far from accidental, crediting an approach that combined “legislative and executive policy alignment, actionable intelligence, kinetic deployment capabilities, regulatory oversight, industry cooperation, and community-embedded surveillance mechanisms.”
Waterways News | www.waterwaysnews.ng
UK Commandos Board Russian Shadow Fleet Tanker in Historic English Channel Seizure
First British-led operation targets oil revenues bankrolling Moscow’s Ukraine war
By Okeoghene Onoriobe | Waterways News
Royal Marine Commandos have boarded and seized a sanctioned Russian shadow fleet tanker in the English Channel in what is being described as a landmark escalation by the United Kingdom in the global effort to choke off the oil revenues sustaining Russia’s military campaign in Ukraine.The vessel, identified as the Smyrtos and sailing under a Cameroon flag, was intercepted in the early hours of Sunday in a joint operation involving Chinook helicopters, surveillance aircraft, a Royal Navy frigate, and a Royal Navy minehunter — a deployment that underscored the seriousness with which London is now approaching sanctions enforcement on the high seas.Officers from the National Crime Agency (NCA) accompanied the commandos onto the vessel, scrutinising cargo records and shipping documents as part of ongoing investigations. Footage released by the British government showed commandos fast-roping onto the tanker’s deck in the pre-dawn darkness.
It is the first time Britain has taken the lead in directly interdicting a vessel linked to Russia’s shadow fleet — a murky network of ageing, obscurely-owned tankers that Moscow has deployed to move its crude oil beyond the reach of Western sanctions.
British Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the operation sent an unambiguous message to those propping up the Kremlin’s war chest. “This successful operation delivers yet another blow to Russia and reminds those fuelling Putin’s war in Ukraine that we will not let them hide,” he posted on X.
The Smyrtos will remain detained off England’s south coast pending further investigation. Paris co-operated closely with London in the operation, the UK government confirmed.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed the seizure and called on European governments to go even further, urging legislative action that would permit not just the detention of tankers but the outright confiscation of their cargoes. “This will certainly help bring peace closer,” he wrote.
Britain has been steadily tightening its grip on shadow fleet activity. Since launching its crackdown, London has sanctioned close to 600 vessels associated with the network. In March, Prime Minister Starmer authorised the British military to board and detain Russian-linked ships suspected of sanctions evasion — authority that was used operationally for the first time on Sunday.
What it means for global shipping
The operation carries significant implications for maritime commerce worldwide, including for Nigerian shipping operators, freight forwarders, and vessel owners with international exposure. Flag states — including African nations whose flags have been exploited by shadow fleet operators seeking cover — may face increased scrutiny from European maritime authorities.
Nigeria, as a prominent flag-of-convenience registrant and a major oil-exporting nation, has a stake in how the international community tightens regulations around tanker ownership transparency, beneficial ownership disclosure, and sanctioned-cargo tracking. The Cameroon flag flown by the Smyrtos at the time of its seizure is a reminder that African maritime registries can be drawn into geopolitical disputes well beyond the continent’s shores.
Maritime legal experts say the British action may embolden other nations to adopt more aggressive enforcement postures, potentially reshaping the legal landscape around vessel detention in international and territorial waters.
Waterways News — Nigeria’s Most Authoritative Maritime News
Maritime Security and Safety
Strait of Hormuz to Reopen as US, Iran Agree Initial Deal to End Three-Month War — Global Shipping Braces for Major Shift
Strait of Hormuz to Reopen as US, Iran Agree Initial Deal to End Three-Month War — Global Shipping Braces for Major Shift
By Okeoghene Onoriobe | Waterways News
In a development poised to reshape global maritime trade, the United States and the Islamic Republic of Iran have announced an initial agreement to end more than three months of war, with provisions to reopen the Strait of Hormuz — one of the world’s most strategically vital shipping corridors.
US President Donald Trump confirmed the breakthrough on Monday, June 15, 2026, saying the deal with Iran was “now complete” in a post on social media.
According to reports, Trump authorised the toll-free opening of the Strait of Hormuz and the simultaneous removal of the United States Naval blockade on Iran . Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also confirmed the agreement, announcing that “the Peace Deal between the United States of America and the Islamic Republic of Iran has been REACHED”. He added that both sides had declared the immediate and permanent termination of military operations on all fronts, including in Lebanon, and noted that mediators would facilitate further meetings in the coming week to lay groundwork for technical talks ahead of an official signing ceremony (NewsNation) , expected on Friday, June 19, in Switzerland.
Background: A Conflict That Shook Global Trade
The crisis began on 28 February 2026 and has lasted more than three months, drawing in Iran, the United States, Israel and shipping companies worldwide. The fallout included a global fuel crisis, a US-led aerial campaign on Iranian targets, a US naval blockade of Iran, and a US naval escort operation, alongside the formation of a Persian Gulf Strait Authority. The human cost was severe: at least 17 merchant ships were damaged, with 12 seafarers killed or missing, and a port worker killed in Bahrai.
Before the war, the Strait of Hormuz carried roughly 25% of the world’s seaborne oil trade and 20% of global LNG shipments. Its closure sent shockwaves through energy markets, with vessel owners suspending operations rather than risk transiting the corridor.
What This Means for Shipping and Energy Markets
Analysts note the reopening carries major implications for tanker operators, freight rates and crude exporters. The Persian Gulf region remains the world’s largest producer of oil and gas, almost all of which is exported by tankers crossing the Strait of Hormuz — a route effectively closed for over three months, with disruptions rippling through the global economy and pushing commodity prices sharply higher.
Nigeria Watch
For Nigeria, a reopened Strait of Hormuz could ease the pressure on global freight rates and insurance premiums that have weighed on Nigerian crude exports and import costs since the crisis began. NIMASA and Nigerian shipowners reliant on chartered tonnage may see a gradual normalisation of war-risk premiums affecting vessels calling at Nigerian ports.
However, stakeholders are advised to await the formal signing — slated for June 19 in Switzerland — and confirmation of safe-passage protocols before adjusting freight and insurance arrangements, as the agreement remains an initial framework with several issues still under negotiation.
11 Feared Dead as Boat Conveying Burial Mourners Capsizes on River Benue
By Emetena Ikuku | Waterways News
At least 11 people, including a pregnant woman and six children, are feared dead following the capsizing of a boat conveying mourners back from a burial ceremony on the River Benue in Makurdi Local Government Area, Benue State.
The incident occurred on Saturday evening as passengers were returning to Daududawadawa, an island community located behind the Nigerian Army School of Military Engineering barracks in the North Bank area of Makurdi.
According to local accounts, the boat — said to be carrying more than 40 passengers — overturned mid-river between 7pm and 8pm amid heavy rainfall and strong winds.
The Commander of Operation Shara (Sweep), a North Bank vigilante outfit, Nura Umar, confirmed that the victims were returning from the burial of a woman from their community held in Wadata. The deceased had reportedly died at a private hospital in North Bank on Saturday morning, after which her remains were taken to Wadata for burial before mourners began their return trip by boat.
Umar said four bodies had been recovered and buried, while divers continued searching for the remaining victims. He added that one survivor had been carrying a baby on her back who did not survive the accident.
The spokesperson for the Benue State Police Command said she had yet to receive an official report on the incident.
The accident comes about six months after the Benue State Government pledged tighter safety enforcement on the state’s waterways following recurring boat mishaps.
Nigeria Watch
This latest tragedy on the River Benue underscores the persistent gap between policy pronouncements and enforcement on Nigeria’s inland waterways. Despite repeated commitments by state governments, including Benue’s pledge six months ago to tighten safety regulations, fatal boat accidents continue largely unabated across the country’s riverine and inland transport corridors.
For the National Inland Waterways Authority (NIWA) and state agencies such as the Lagos State Waterways Authority (LASWA), the Makurdi disaster is a stark reminder that safety regulation cannot remain concentrated in major commercial waterways alone. Inland communities that depend on boats as their primary — often only — means of transport, particularly during the rainy season, remain acutely vulnerable to overloading, lack of life jackets, and absence of weather advisories.
The recurring pattern of overloaded vessels operating without basic safety equipment, often during adverse weather, points to a systemic enforcement failure rather than isolated incidents. With the rainy season intensifying across Nigeria’s middle belt and riverine states, stakeholders in the maritime safety ecosystem — including NIWA, state waterways authorities, and community-level vigilante and emergency response groups — face renewed pressure to extend life jacket distribution programmes, weather alert systems, and passenger manifest enforcement beyond the commercial ports and into Nigeria’s vast network of inland river crossings, where the human cost of inaction continues to mount.
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