(CNN) — Nigerian militants claimed Saturday that they detonate a car bomb outside an oil refinery in Warri.
A Nigerian army spokesman told the French news agency AFP that the blast caused no casualties and only minimal damage.
A group calling itself the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta said the blast was a warning to companies working in Nigeria’s oil fields, especially the Chinese. Chinese President Hu Jintao signed oil deals earlier this week with Nigerian officials during a state visit.
“Our operatives in Delta state in the Niger Delta planted and detonated one car bomb amidst petroleum product bridging tankers located close to the refinery in Warri,” the group said in an e-mail sent to news organizations.
“We wish to warn the Chinese government and its oil companies to steer well clear of the Niger Delta. Chinese citizens found in oil installations will be treated as thieves. The Chinese government, by investing in stolen crude, places its citizens in our line of fire,” the group said.
The militants claim the government of Nigeria has extracted billions of dollars worth of oil from the delta while leaving the region undeveloped and its residents impoverished.
Attacks, which have included bombings and kidnappings, have cut Nigeria’s oil output by as much as 20 percent.