The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has uncovered a suspected illegal oil refinery allegedly operated by Chinese nationals in Ogere, Ogun State, with investigators discovering underground processing tanks containing substances suspected to be diesel.
The discovery was made on Saturday, October 31, 2026, by operatives of the commission’s Lagos Zonal Directorate 2 following intelligence gathering and surveillance of suspected illegal sludge oil refining activities.
In a statement issued on Tuesday, November 3, the EFCC said the facility was deserted when its operatives arrived, although they discovered waste materials believed to have resulted from the refining process and underground tanks suspected to have been used to heat and process sludge oil.
Two of the tanks inspected contained substances suspected to be Automotive Gas Oil (AGO), commonly known as diesel.
According to the commission, preliminary investigations indicated that the operators sourced sludge oil, also known as black sludge, from Warri in Delta State and Port Harcourt in Rivers State before transporting it to the facility in Ogere for processing.
The EFCC alleged that the operators subjected the sludge oil to intense heat, allowing lighter petroleum components to pass through a series of chambers and filters in a process believed to produce diesel for sale in the Nigerian market.
The discovery has raised concerns about the potential economic and environmental consequences of unregulated petroleum processing, particularly where the operators, ownership structure and regulatory status of a facility have not been established.
The commission said security personnel at the premises told investigators that the Chinese nationals allegedly operating the refinery had not disclosed their identities or the name of the company behind the facility.
Following the discovery, EFCC operatives took control of the premises as investigations continued to establish the identities of the alleged operators, determine ownership of the facility and assess the full extent of the suspected illegal activities.
The commission is also investigating possible economic sabotage linked to the operation.
The discovery followed an earlier EFCC crackdown on four suspected illegal lithium-processing plants in the same Ogere area. In that separate operation, the commission reportedly arrested 15 people, including 14 Chinese nationals and one Nigerian, over alleged illegal mineral-processing activities.
The latest development highlights the growing scrutiny of suspected illegal activities in Nigeria’s extractive and natural-resource sectors, where authorities have repeatedly raised concerns about regulatory compliance, revenue losses and the environmental consequences of unauthorised operations.
However, no arrests in connection with the suspected oil refinery had been announced in the reports available as of November 3. The alleged operators’ identities, the facility’s ownership and the composition of the substances recovered remain subjects of investigation.
The EFCC’s investigation is expected to determine whether the refinery operated without the necessary approvals, the scale of its activities and whether any individuals or companies should face prosecution.
