Use our pull-down menus to find more stories
  


OR subscribers use AllAfrica's premium search engine


Click here to read or make comments on this topic »

Nigeria: ExxonMobil, Shell Resume Production


This Day (Lagos)
 

Email This Page

Print This Page

Comment on this article

This Day (Lagos)

7 May 2008
Posted to the web 7 May 2008

Fidelia Okwuonu With Agency Report
Lagos

After an eight-day strike, ExxonMobil has returned its oil production output in Nigeria to normal operating levels, while Shell plans to kick off a partial resumption of production after it shut down operations following militant attacks.

Shell said it would resume"within days".

According to the company, "We are pleased to report that production operated by ExxonMobil upstream affiliates in Nigeria has been restored to pre-shut in levels,"

The strike by members of the Petroleum and Gas Workers Union (PENGASSAN) shut in virtually all of ExxonMobil's 800,000 barrels per day output, forcing the US supermajor to declare force majeure on its shipments at the start of last week.

Although the company has not been able to confirm if it has lifted the force majeure following the end of the strike last week but however, the company is still in talks with the union over salary increases.

A spokesman for Shell said its production in Nigeria was still down by about 164,000 bpd due to recent militant attacks but it would start to partly restore that "within days".

According to the spokesman, the Saturday attack by Niger Delta militants, which blew up an oil flow station in the southern state of Bayelsa was "not a severe incident" and had little impact on production.

Meanwhile, oil price has set new record as it hit $122 a barrel yesterday, as the market was driven by concerns over violence in key producer Nigeria and a struggling US currency, analysts said.

After spiking to a fresh high, New York's main oil futures contract, light sweet crude for June delivery, pulled back to stand at $121.65 per barrel, still up $1.68 from Monday's close.

London's Brent North Sea crude for June also reached an all-time high, at $120.41, before slipping back to $120.07 for a gain of $1.94.

The latest records beat all-time highs set earlier Tuesday. "Market headlines are dominated by the impact of currency fluctuations, geopolitics in the form of actual and potential threats to supply in Nigeria, Iraq and Iran, plus better-than-expected recent US economic data," said Barclays Capital analyst Kevin Norrish.

After an eight-day strike, ExxonMobil has returned its oil production output in Nigeria to normal operating levels, while Shell plans to kick off a partial resumption of production after it shut down operations following militant attacks Shell said it would resume"within days".

According to the company, "We are pleased to report that production operated by ExxonMobil upstream affiliates in Nigeria has been restored to pre-shut in levels,"

The strike by members of the Petroleum and Gas Workers Union (PENGASSAN) shut in virtually all of ExxonMobil's 800,000 barrels per day output, forcing the US supermajor to declare force majeure on its shipments at the start of last week.

Although the company has not been able to confirm if it has lifted the force majeure following the end of the strike last week but however, the company is still in talks with the union over salary increases.

Meanwhile, a spokesman for Shell said its production in Nigeria was still down by about 164,000 bpd due to recent militant attacks but it would start to partly restore that "within days".

According to the spokesman, the Saturday attack by Niger Delta militants, which blew up an oil flow station in the southern state of Bayelsa was "not a severe incident" and had little impact on production.

Meanwhile, oil price has set new record as it hit $122 dollar a barrel yesterday, as the market was driven by concerns over violence in key producer Nigeria and a struggling US currency, analysts said.

Relevant Links

After spiking to a fresh high, New York's main oil futures contract, light sweet crude for June delivery, pulled back to stand at $121.65 per barrel, still up $1.68 from Monday's close.

London's Brent North Sea crude for June also reached an all-time high, at $120.41, before slipping back to $120.07 for a gain of $1.94.

The latest records beat all-time highs set earlier Tuesday. "Market headlines are dominated by the impact of currency fluctuations, geopolitics in the form of actual and potential threats to supply in Nigeria, Iraq and Iran, plus better-than-expected recent US economic data," said Barclays Capital analyst Kevin Norrish.



AllAfrica aggregates and indexes content from over 125 African news organizations, plus more than 200 other sources, who are responsible for their own reporting and views. Articles and commentaries that identify allAfrica.com as the publisher are produced or commissioned by AllAfrica.

 
Share this on:
Facebook
Digg
Del.icio.us
StumbleUpon
Muti


Copyright © 2008 This Day. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections -- or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here.

Make allAfrica.com your home page | RSS Feed

Top | Site Guide | Who We Are | Advertising | Search | Subscribe

Questions or Comments? Contact us. Read our Privacy Statement.

HOME
allAfrica.com


Relevant Links




Export Controls Curtail Aid for Hungry Neighbours
House of Reps Satisfied With Obasanjo's Response
Embassy in the UK Comes Under Attack
How Museveni Learnt of Roads Corruption
More Oil, Gas Found in Hoima District