Nigeria: Total Oil Considers Withdrawal
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Monday, 09 June 2008 |
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Total is reconsidering its operation in Nigeria
following the continuous attacks on facilities and kidnapping of
workers of oil companies in the country by militants in the Niger Delta
region, according to local media.
Christophe
de Margerie, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Total Group, told a
French parliamentary committee last week that the company was
assessing its presence in Nigeria because of unrest in the Niger Delta region.
He
noted that should the company pull out, it would worsen the already
high oil price which has gone above 135 U.S. dollars per barrel.
"We
have people who work over there, who are unfortunately more and more
often subjected to major aggressions or kidnapped. We are asking
ourselves the question about staying.
There
has been indiscriminate kidnapping of oil companies' workers in the
Niger Delta by militants, a development that has led to shut-in of many
oil facilities resulting in loss of about one quarter of Nigeria's output.
According to the report, Nigeria has lost its position as Africa's leading oil producer to Angola. Figures issued by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) showed that Nigeria, previously the biggest oil producer in Africa, was surpassed by Angola in April.
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