On Monday, Nigeria's state-owned oil corporation NNPC Ltd said an 800,000-litre (211,338-US-gallon) tanker carrying stolen crude was captured off the coast of Cameroon and will be burned as a deterrence to oil theft.

Crude theft from pipelines and wells in the Niger Delta has hampered the country's productivity in recent years and is one of the most serious difficulties that incoming President Bola Tinubu faces.

According to NNPC, the oil was taken from a borehole in southwestern Ondo state. According to the firm, the MT Tura II vessel was owned by the locally registered Holab Maritime Services Limited and lacked sufficient oil documents. Holab was unable to be reached for comment on the phone lines posted on its website. "Destroying vessels involved in the transport of stolen crude oil is critical as a strong deterrent," the NNPC stated.