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Youths quit Shell flowstations in Nigeria after deal struck
By Ade Obisesan
AFP
LAGOS
Petroleumworld.com 10 27 06Protesting youths left three flowstations of the Anglo-Dutch oil group Shell that they had occupied since Tuesday and production is "very likely" to restart there Friday, Shell officials told AFP Thursday.
"Yes, they (the youths) have left the facilities following agreement the government of Rivers State had with their representatives on Wednesday," a Shell official said.
"If we have any agreements with them, we will implement them," he added.
Normal production was expected to begin on Friday in these flowstations, said another Shell official contacted by telephone.
"We have spoken with the production department and they have said that it is possible on Friday," he said.
Earlier, an industry official said that the Nigerian government had reached agreements with the youths, who had invaded three flowstations belonging to Shell and another belonging to US firm Chevron in Nigeria's southern Rivers State.
"The Rivers State government Wednesday mediated in the dispute and organised a meeting between the youths, Shell and Chevron and after the meeting certain agreements were reached," said the official who demanded anonymity.
"Everything has been settled after the mediation," added the official, who declined to give details of the agreements reached.
It was not known if any ransom had been paid to the youths.
The youths on Tuesday invaded the Ekulama I, Ekulama II and Belema flowstations belonging to Shell, and the Robert Kili flowstation belonging to Chevron, the official said.
Ekulama I had been shut down earlier this month following a similar dispute with local communities.
But a Chevron spokesman denied that its flowstation was invaded by the youths, explaining to AFP that the company volutarily shut down the facility as a "precautionary measure."
The youths said earlier Wednesday that they invaded the Shell flowstations the previous day in protest against the non-implemention of an agreement the company signed with their communities.
Youths and armed groups in the Niger Delta region have since the beginning of this year intensified their campaign for a greater share in oil revenue by carrying out killings, kidnapping oil workers, mostly expatriates, and destroying oil facilities.
Seven expatriate oil workers -- four Britons, a Romanian, a Malaysian and an Indonesian working as contractors for US oil giant Exxon Mobil -- abducted on October 3 in the restive region were freed Saturday.
Two Nigerian employees were believed to have been killed during the attack for which nobody claimed responsibility.
The kidnappings were the latest in a series of incidents in recent months that have slashed the usual oil output of 2.6 million barrels per day in Nigeria -- the world's sixth largest producer -- by a quarter.
Two weeks ago, about 60 Nigerian employees of Shell and subcontractor firms were captured in the southern state of Bayelsa before being freed two days later.
The week before that, another Shell plant was attacked in neighbouring Rivers State by around 70 heavily armed men. Fourteen soldiers were killed and 25 workers were kidnapped over the following two days.
Shell, which produces around half of Nigerian oil exports, is currently losing around 477,000 barrels per day in output due to the unrest.
According to the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) the majority of the region's population live on less than a dollar a day. Oil exports account for around 95 percent of Nigeria's foreign currency receipts.
AFP 26 1934 GMT 10 06
Copyright ©2006 AFP. All Rights Reserved.
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