Our World

Oil Platforms Seized in Nigeria

I found this very interesting, considering we just talked about it in class….Today, angry Nigerian villagers seized three oil platforms owned by Shell. These platforms, Ekulama 1, Ekulama 2 and Belema, are oil pumping platforms located in the Niger Delta. The Kula villagers invaded the facilities, claiming Shell failed to meet the terms of agreement to provide aid to the community. However, state government officials were holding negotiations with the protesters to address their problems. During the past decade, there has been many protests like this. The protesters believe that these oil companies are taking the wealth from their land, and giving little back. And despite living on top of much of Nigeria’s oil, the inhabitants of the southern region remain some of the poorest in the country. And because they have little influence in the government, they turn to the oil companies who run joint ventures with the Nigerian government. They demand jobs, electricity and schools. However, most of these seizures end peacefully. Also this year, armed militia attacks have increased. These men claim to be to be fighting for similar causes. During these protests, the militants hold oil workers as hostages, using them for ransom, or to meet demands of giving more local control of the regions oil. Attacks by armed militias on the country’s oil region has reduced the amount of oil being exported. However, the Shell company is uncertain how much oil has been cut off since today’s attacks. This is a serious problem for Nigeria’s economy, because they are the fifth largest exporter to the United States, with the average of 2.5 million barrels a day. The Brussels, Belgium-based International Crisis Group said that due to Nigeria’s flawed federal system, violent, ethnic and civil unrest is sweeping the country. And with the lack of genuine structure for sharing power, dangerous rivalries have form, creating armed ethic militia groups, especially in the delta area.

Also due to this seizure, other local oil companies have shut down platforms. Chevron has shut down its Robertkiri platform, claiming that they didn’t want their platforms to be taken over as well. However, no word has been said of what happened to the workers on the rig. This is a very serious problem for the region. Something needs to be done by the government, because it is hurting both groups. The local people are extremely poor, even though they are standing on a very wealthy resource. And the government is being hurt every hour that the protests occur. The longer this happens, the more oil is going to be lost. The government needs to find ways to distribute the money being made from the oil. Also, some sort of agreement can to be made with the oil companies, giving a certain percent of money back to the people. But that is my opinion, what do you think?

Villagers Shut Down Shell Oil Plaforms

posted by Anonymous @ 10/25/2006 11:22:00 PM