Posted on 08/29/2015 7:00:39 AM PDT by thackney
Royal Dutch Shell Plc (LON:RDSA) declared a force majeure on Nigerian Bonny Light oil exports yesterday, as it shut down two key pipelines to the coast.
Shell did not give further details and did not provide a timeline for reopening the pipelines, but traders argued that the unexpected developments were unlikely to last long, Reuters reported.
Nigeria’s oil industry is in dire need of greater investment in maintenance whilst also having to deal with numerous instances of oil theft. Shell sold its stake in the Nembe Creek pipeline earlier this year, alongside several other interests in the country, as part of its strategy to shift focus to more profitable and manageable assets.
Shell’s share price had climbed 1.30 percent to 1,675.00p as of 09:06 BST today, outperforming the FTSE 100 which was down some 0.2 percent.
Oil prices surged to their highest in six years yesterday, with Brent futures on the NYMEX climbing more than 10 percent on the day. However, prices are still some 50 percent lower on an annual basis.
In separate news, Shell secured a significant shale exploration deal for Argentina’s much-coveted Vaca Muerta region, it was reported earlier this week.
Argentina is one of the four leading shale gas and oil-producing countries in the world, alongside the US, Canada and China. According to the US Energy Information Administration, Argentina has drilled more than 275 shale wells in the in the last two years alone, and there is “potential to significantly increase production”.
“...Nigeria’s oil industry is in dire need of greater investment in maintenance whilst also having to deal with numerous instances of oil theft....”
********************************************************************************************************
Thefts in Nigeria? Jeez, who would have thought. /sarc
What? The prince didn’t pay up?
So now they’re beating a dead cow in Argentina?
Trying to push the price of oil up?
Probably tired of thieves daily making holes in the pipelines and stealing oil.
EITI: IOC Reports Show Nigeria Lost $13.7bn to Oil Theft in Four Years
http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/neiti-ioc-reports-show-nigeria-lost-13-7bn-to-oil-theft-in-four-years/216405/
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.