As
Nigeria is already bleeding from the impact of low oil prices with
revenue dipping month after month, another major disaster in the oil
industry has hit the nation's depleting economy.
Forcados Oil station
Premium Times has exclusively reported that Nigeria’s crude oil
export operation has suffered a serious setback following a major
crack-up of a giant underwater pipeline at the Forcados export terminal
as crude oil lifting has now been suspended at that platform following
the incident.
It was gathered that the pipeline which is described as a big
artery in the nation’s oil production, was said to have suffered a huge
rupture under circumstances that are at the moment still hazy.
An insider at the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) disclosed to a correspondent "With export now cut as a result of the incident, oil revenue will descend even lower until the pipeline is fixed."
According to industry experts, repairing the pipeline might cost the country as much as $100 million.
Sabotage by Niger Delta militants is completely ruled out but the
same cannot be said at the moment of rogue elements within the system
who are known to have in the past orchestrated similar damages in the
hope of benefitting from the repairs and clean-up contracts that must
follow.
Forcados terminal in Delta State is one of Nigeria’s biggest
terminals with capacity to export about 400,000 barrels of oil a
day. Illegal interference with pipelines, with attendant leaks, has
always dwindled crude oil receipts into Forcados, a terminal operated by
the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company (NPDC).
It was gathered that the latest incident at Forcados occurred about
10.55pm last Saturday but it wasn’t until Sunday that Shell discovered a
spill.
Forcados is made up of two parts: namely the Tank Farm which
receives crude oil produced from oil wells in Delta, Ondo, Edo and parts
of Bayelsa States, and the Crude Oil Loading Platform where ships must
come to lift crude.
The affected pipeline links the tank farm and the platform.
Insiders say it is a very mighty pipe on the waterbed going to the sea.
The ruptured section of this key pipeline is located at Tokebeleu, near
Ojulagha, an Ijaw village in Delta State.
Media Relations Manager of Shell, Precious Okolobo, in a written
response, said his company was already investigating the source of a
crude oil spill observed on water around Forcados Terminal on Sunday
February 14, adding that the initial investigation would enable the
company to quickly determine what suitable response was further needed.
He said Shell’s joint venture and third party production into the
terminal has been suspended as a precautionary measure while the
company’s Emergency Response and Oil Response teams have been activated
to manage the incident.
In what appears as a large-scale disaster management, Shell said
booms and other oil containment resources were being deployed to the
area to try to stop the spread of spilled oil.
“The support of industry group, Clean Nigeria Associates (CNA),
has been enlisted for a comprehensive response to the spill. The
relevant authorities including security agencies have been informed of
the incident, preparatory to a joint investigation visit which will
determine the cause and volume of oil spilled,” Mr Okolobo said.
The spokesperson for the NNPC, Ohi Alegbe, declined to comment for this story.