Three Filipinos working for a U.S. construction firm were kidnapped in southern Nigeria early Friday, a day after a German was abducted in a region where the handling of oil revenue has caused strife between multinational companies and local communities.
Four armed men blocked the vehicle of the Baker Hughes Inc. employees on the road, fired in the air and then took them hostage, according to a colleague who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to talk to the press.
State police spokeswoman Irejua Barasua confirmed the kidnapping.
Kidnappings and attacks on oil facilities have become common in the West African country’s southern delta. The German taken Thursday was employed by construction giant Bilfinger Berger AG, based in Mannheim, Germany, which was contracted to build facilities for an international oil company. He was taken from his jeep and forced into a boat by 10 attackers, according to Barasua.
Houston-based Baker Hughes is a construction and engineering firm working in Nigeria under a subcontract with Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas.
No group claimed responsibility. The Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, which has kidnapped several foreigners in the past, said it was not involved in Friday’s incident.
Nigeria is Africa’s largest oil producer and a major supplier to the United States.
Attacks on oil pipelines and kidnappings by militants in Nigeria’s southern delta have cut oil production by more than 20 percent this year, adding to the upward pressure on world prices. The country normally produces about 2.5 million barrels a day.