Pipe problems: for Shell in Nigeria
Shell halts Utorogu outage on pipe attack
Supermajor Shell said today it had stopped its Utorogu gas plant in Nigeria's southern Niger Delta after an incident on the Escravos-Lagos Pipeline System.
The pipeline system carries gas from the Niger Delta to feed power stations in the southern part of Africa's most populous nation, including the commercial hub of Lagos, and feeds into the West African gas pipeline structure.
"We have no report of an attack on the Utorogu gas plant," Shell spokeswoman Caroline Wittgen said.
"However the plant was shut down yesterday because of an incident on the Escravos-Lagos Pipeline System. Utorogu produces into the pipeline," she said.
Utorogu was shut down for several days in April in order to repair a pipeline that was tapped by thieves.
That brief closure of the facility, located in Delta state, caused the Opec member's already intermittent power generation to fall by more than 20% after three power stations had to be shut down.
An industry source said members of the Iwerekan community in Delta state were thought to have been responsible for yesterday's incident on the pipeline, although it was not immediately clear whether it was an act of attempted theft or sabotage.