Pipeline blast hits oil supplies in Nigeria
PORT HARCOURT, Nigeria, March 18 (Reuters) - Unidentified attackers blew up an oil pipeline in Nigeria's southern delta, further hitting oil supplies from the leading OPEC nation, authorities said on Saturday.
The blast on the Tebidaba-Brass pipeline near Brass Terminal, both operated by Italian oil company Agip, was the latest in a series of attacks on oil installations in the eighth biggest oil-exporting country, which had already reduced supplies by almost a quarter.
Agip, a unit of ENI, confirmed an "act of sabotage" on the pipeline and said an unspecified quantity of production had been lost. One oil industry source said production of 67,000 barrels per day (bpd) had been cut.
In a statement issued by ENI headquarters in Italy, the company said: "The situation is under control and operations have commenced to define the extent of the pipeline damage and contain any associated pollution."
Militants demanding greater autonomy for Nigeria's poor oil heartland have carried out several attacks and kidnapped oil workers in the past three months.
A police spokesman in the region said no one was kidnapped or killed in the latest attack. Militants are holding three foreign oil workers hostage.
Royal Dutch Shell has cut its output by 455,000 bpd and other companies have shut another 100,000 bpd since Feb. 18. The latest explosion brought the total impact of the attacks to 622,000 bpd, 26 percent of Nigeria's 2.4 million bpd capacity.
The blast on the Tebidaba-Brass pipeline near Brass Terminal, both operated by Italian oil company Agip, was the latest in a series of attacks on oil installations in the eighth biggest oil-exporting country, which had already reduced supplies by almost a quarter.
Agip, a unit of ENI, confirmed an "act of sabotage" on the pipeline and said an unspecified quantity of production had been lost. One oil industry source said production of 67,000 barrels per day (bpd) had been cut.
In a statement issued by ENI headquarters in Italy, the company said: "The situation is under control and operations have commenced to define the extent of the pipeline damage and contain any associated pollution."
Militants demanding greater autonomy for Nigeria's poor oil heartland have carried out several attacks and kidnapped oil workers in the past three months.
A police spokesman in the region said no one was kidnapped or killed in the latest attack. Militants are holding three foreign oil workers hostage.
Royal Dutch Shell has cut its output by 455,000 bpd and other companies have shut another 100,000 bpd since Feb. 18. The latest explosion brought the total impact of the attacks to 622,000 bpd, 26 percent of Nigeria's 2.4 million bpd capacity.
posted by Marko at 3/18/2006 06:11:00 PM
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