(AP) Attackers vandalized an oil installation run by a French oil company in Nigeria’s restive southern region, a company spokeswoman said Monday. No injuries or kidnappings were reported.
Total spokeswoman Patricia Marie said an unknown number of people “intruded” Sunday night on a rig that was not currently in use some 50 kilometers from Port Harcourt.
The intruders opened what Marie called a dam, causing “a couple of barrel’s worth” of oil to spill out.
Local residents spotted the intruders and alerted Total, she said. It was not clear whether any arrests were made, Marie said.
“Everything quickly returned to normal and there were no injuries,” she added. She said the incident had not affected Total’s production in the region.
Attacks by militants demanding a greater share of oil revenues for their region and communities protesting pollution and underdevelopment have cut crude production in the Nigeria by around a quarter this year. The restive southern Niger Delta region remains deeply impoverished despite being the heart of production in Africa’s largest oil exporter and producing tens of billions of dollars in revenues annually.
Since December 2005, several major pipelines have been bombed and about 180 expatriate workers have been kidnapped. Attacks on oil installations have become an almost daily occurrence following flawed elections last month, which saw the notoriously corrupt ruling party returned to power with a landslide victory. There have also been several attacks on police and government officials.