NIGERIA: KEY CHEVRON FLOWSTATION ATTACKED; OIL

C O N F I D E N T I A L LAGOS 000281 SIPDIS DOE FOR GPERSON, CHAYLOCK E.O. 12958: DECL: 07/07/2019 TAGS: EPET ENRG PGOV NI SUBJECT: NIGERIA: KEY CHEVRON FLOWSTATION ATTACKED; OIL PRODUCTION DOWN REF: LAGOS 262 Classified By: Consul General Donna M. Blair for reasons 1.4 (B) and (D ) ¶1. (C) Chevron's Okan flowstation located 7 miles offshore of Delta State was attacked on the evening of July 5. Okan is a key node in Chevron's near offshore oilfields, connecting those fields to the Escravos export terminal onshore as well as connecting the Escravos terminal to the offshore export buoys where oil tankers receive crude for export. Chevron is still assessing the damage, but Femi Odumabo, Chevron Nigeria Government Relations Manager told Energyoff on July 7 he expects Chevron to declare force majeure on Escravos crude oil loadings. Odumabo said all near offshore production feeding Escravos has been shut-in as a result of the attack. No Amcits were hurt in the attack. When asked about Nigeria's current daily oil production, Odumabo said he thought 1.3 million barrels per day (bpd) was an accurate estimate, but that number may fall to 1 million depending on the size of Chevron's force majeure. Another contact with close ties to NNPC reported similar numbers on July 7. ¶2. (C) The attack may have been more extensive than reported in the press. A contact with a major Chevron subcontractor shared photographs of "well jackets" reportedly damaged in an attack the same night the Okan facility was hit. The photographs, taken by one of the contractor's Escravos-based employees the morning after the attack, show a heavily damaged oil platform tilted to one side, a large fire, and a ruptured pipe spewing what looks to be crude oil. The contact reported however, that Chevron is not evacuating additional personnel from Escravos and is seeking to repair the damage quickly rather than wait for the security situation to improve. This contact believes all of Chevron's Escravos production is shut-in. ¶3. (C) Comment: Although some security officers with local oil companies purport to see broad "MEND" coordination and planning behind these attacks, there is no particular reason to believe that's the case. Angry followers of Tompolo scattered after the May 15 JTF assault on Camp Five could just as easily be acting independently or with only general guidance from Tompolo. We've said it before (reftel),but it bears repeating: the network of pipelines, flowstations and wellheads strewn across the Niger Delta swamps and near offshore are vulnerable to anyone with a grievance, a canoe, some dynamite, and a little knowledge of the creeks and oil infrastructure. Securing this extensive network is a daunting task, although key nodes like the Okan flowstation should be obvious locations for increased JTF protection. End Comment. ¶4. (U) This cable cleared with Embassy Abuja. BLAIR