Terrorism Escalating In Nigeria

Terrorism Escalating In Nigeria

ACTS of terrorism are currently escalating in Nigeria, the most populous black country in the world. Besides the ongoing menace of the politically inspired bombings and killings of the Boko Haram, an Islamic terrorist group, environmental terrorism is equally on the rise in the Niger Delta, the country's main oil and gas basin.

Health activists and concerned public officials say continued oil spills and gas flaring by oil majors operating in the Niger Delta, are endangering the health of citizens.

In spite of the worrisome health hazards of continued oil and gas pollution in the volatile oil basin, statistics from Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), a state-owned corporation, indicate that this act of impunity is growing as the year goes by.

Going by the facts available to AkanimoReports, the environmental damaging practice of gas flaring by oil majors in Nigeria, currently stands at 21.93 percent.

This implies that gas flare rate in Nigeria, a country currently facing serious security challenges, and a protracted national question, has risen from 14 percent. in January this year, to 22 percent last February.

NNPC, the country's national oil corporation, was not able to give any reason for the increase

The latest edition of the national oil corporation's Monthly Petroleum Information (MPI) simply said that 78 percent of gas flare production was utilized, pointing out that the natural gas produced from oil fields in the Niger Delta in February 2012, were used for power generation, fuel for oil production, reinjection into oil wells, export and industrial applications.

The MPI indicates that 206.02 Billion Standard Cubic Feet (BSCF) of gas was produced, out of which, 160.84 BSCF was utilized.

The information also disclosed that the February gas production figure of 206.02 was lower than the January figure of 215.86 BSCF

But a total of 45,177 BSCF of gas was flared at onshore and offshore oil fields in the environmentally endangered oil region in February, while 30.33 BSCF was flared in the preceding month.

Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), the Nigeria subsidiary of the Anglo-Dutch oil and gas super major, Shell, is leading the gas production chart with 69.37 BSCF. They utilized 64.27 BSCF, while the big oil flared 5.1 BSCF of its gas production.

Shell is followed by the Italian oil major, Nigeria Agip Oil Company with 3 8.69 BSCF of gas production, out of which they utilized 29.05 and flared 7.50 BSCF of gas in February 2012.

The American oil giant, Mobil Producing Nigeria (MPN), that operates the Qua Iboe oil fields, off the Akwa Ibom State coastline, produced a total of 35,07 BSCF of gas , used 25.05 BSCF and flared 10.60 BSCF of its gas output under the joint venture category.

Apparently piqued by this environmental terror, Environmental Rights Action (ERA), a foremost environmental rights advocacy group in the country which also doubles as Nigeria's wing of Friends of the Earth, says government lacks the political will to stop gas flaring.

Executive Director of ERA, Nnimmo Bassey, who is also the Chair of Friends of the Earth International (FoEI), a global federation of environmental rights advocacy organizations, told AkanimoReports on telephone on Thursday: ''I think, our central government needs to rise up and side the people, by insisting on immediate end to gas flaring in the country. It can be done, and the oil companies know that it can''.

ENDS

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