THE WALL STREET JOURNAL: Shell: Nigeria Oil Production Near Normal After Trouble: “Nigeria's biggest oil producer Royal Dutch/Shell (RD SC) expects oil production to return to normal soon after weeks of outages caused by vandalism and community disputes…”: “The supply disruptions forced Shell to declare force majeure on delays to oil shipments by a week or more. The force majeure remains in effect.” (ShellNews.net) Posted 20 Jan 05
DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
LONDON -- Nigeria's biggest oil producer Royal Dutch/Shell (RD SC) expects oil production to return to normal soon after weeks of outages caused by vandalism and community disputes, a spokesman said Wednesday.
Production from the Ekulama fields is now 76,000 b/d, some 6,000 b/d higher than before hundreds of impoverished villagers upset at the lack of local development projects forced its closure Dec. 6, the spokesman said.
Technicians repaired leaks Tuesday on the Trans-Niger Pipeline carrying oil from inland fields to the Bonny Island export terminal caused by vandals Dec. 17, bringing back on stream some 29,100 b/d of the 44,000 b/d shut in, the spokesman said.
In Odeama, a 12,400 b/d flow-station forced to be closed by villagers demanding Shell repair a donated power generator will restart Wednesday after the generator was fixed, the spokesman said.
Shell pumps about 1 million b/d of the world's world seventh-largest exporter Nigeria's 2.4 million b/d.
Shell is the frequent target of community unrest over simmering anger about income inequality, ethnic rivalries and corruption in the oil-rich Niger Delta.
The supply disruptions forced Shell to declare force majeure on delays to oil shipments by a week or more. The force majeure remains in effect.
Global supply problems including in Norway, Russia, Iraq and Nigeria coupled with a blast of cold winter weather in the U.S. have pushed crude futures prices back close to the $50 mark.
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries meets Jan. 30 to discuss possible output cuts, on the same day that troubled producer Iraq is slated to hold elections, adding to traders' sentiment that futures prices could rise.
-By Shai Oster, Dow Jones Newswires; +44-20-7842-9357; shai.oster@dowjones.com