Gunshots Fired Near ExxonMobil Site In Nigeria
January 8, 2008
Gunshots
were fired outside ExxonMobil Corp.''s main oil export terminal in
Nigeria recently, according to the Associated Press. No injuries were
reported. Oil operations at the Qua Iboe terminal in southern Nigeria
were not suspended and the situation appeared to be calm later in the
day. Earlier, there had been reports that an armed group was advancing
on the facility, which has the capacity to handle more than 500,000
barrels daily, making it Nigeria''s biggest export terminal. Armed
militants campaigning for a greater share of oil wealth in the oil-rich
delta have stepped up attacks on oil installations in the past two
years, cutting more than 20 percent of Nigeria''s oil exports of 2.5
million barrels daily. Seven foreign oil workers were seized during an
attack last year by militants on a residential compound housing
ExxonMobil employees near the terminal. Two guards were killed during
the attack and the kidnapped workers were freed after two weeks. More
than 150 foreign oil workers have been seized in attacks during 2007 in the southern oil region. Most were freed unharmed after
the payment of ransom. Nigeria is Africa''s leading oil exporter and one
of the top five suppliers of U.S. oil imports.
