NIGERIA: MILITANTS ATTACK CHEVRON, SHELL FACILITIES

UNCLAS LAGOS 000365 SENSITIVE SIPDIS DOE FOR GPERSON, CHAYLOCK E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: EPET PGOV NI SUBJECT: NIGERIA: MILITANTS ATTACK CHEVRON, SHELL FACILITIES ¶1. (SBU) Militants associated with the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) attacked Chevron and Shell oil facilities in Rivers State on the evening of September 13. A Chevron contact confirmed the company's Robertkiri flowstation was attacked. The flowstation has been shut-in for some time prior to the attack due to ongoing pipeline repair work, but the company was evacuating all "non-essential" personnel from the site and was reviewing its security posture in the area. Chevron said operations in other areas in the Niger Delta continued normally. Shell flowstations and a gas facility were also attacked. On September 12, Shell extended the force majeure on exports of Bonny Light crude. The company said it found additional leaks in Nembe Creek pipeline and ongoing violence was slowing repair work. The pipeline feeds crude oil to Shell's Bonny export terminal and was damaged in a July attack. ¶2. (SBU) Comment: A spokesman for MEND told the local press the group has declared an "oil war" and warned all expatriates to leave the region. So far, violence seems concentrated in Rivers State. The state is a vitally important area for the Nigerian petroleum industry. Besides its oilfields, the state is home to the Onne deepwater support base which provides logistics support to most offshore oil platforms. End Comment. BLAIR