• 3 minutes e-car sales collapse
  • 6 minutes America Is Exceptional in Its Political Divide
  • 11 minutes Perovskites, a ‘dirt cheap’ alternative to silicon, just got a lot more efficient
  • 10 mins GREEN NEW DEAL = BLIZZARD OF LIES
  • 6 days If hydrogen is the answer, you're asking the wrong question
  • 13 hours How Far Have We Really Gotten With Alternative Energy
  • 10 days Biden's $2 trillion Plan for Insfrastructure and Jobs

Nigeria Arrests Mastermind Of Agip Oil Pipeline Bombing

The Nigerian military has apprehended the mastermind of the Agip oil pipeline bombings that lost Italian Eni thousands of barrels of oil that have spilled into waterways and fishing grounds.

Prince Alvin Cockman Oygun (AKA Commander Abula) was apprehended by military authorities shortly after the launch of a string of attacks on the pipeline earlier this month, but the government of Nigeria withheld this information.

Eni is in charge of oil operations in Bayelsa State, and the attacks resulted in the loss of 16,000 barrels of oil equivalent daily.

The Agip pipeline bombings were the second major attack on the OPEC member’s installations since an arrest warrant was issued this month for former militant leader Government Ekpemupolo, AKA Tompolo.

Related: Why Today’s Oil Bust Pales In Comparison To The 80’s

Ekpemupolo, formerly high-profile leaders of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND), is wanted by Nigerian authorities for money laundering and the illegal diversion of more than $200 million.

Also this month, Nigeria’s state oil company was forced to shut down its Kaduna and Port Harcourt refineries following an attack on pipelines bringing crude to the plants.

The Niger Delta was previously home to an insurgency by local militants who wanted a greater share of the region’s oil wealth. A 2009 amnesty deal that saw the government provide the militants job training and monthly cash stipends is credited with quelling the violence.

Related: The Hidden Agenda Behind Saudi Arabia’s Market Share Strategy

Following the amnesty, many former leaders enriched themselves through lucrative pipeline protection contracts under previous president Goodluck Jonathan. With a new president now at the helm in Nigeria, a massive anti-corruption campaign is hitting hard at these earlier relations, and retribution attacks are expected to continue.

ADVERTISEMENT

The most recent attack is the fifth on an oil installation in the Niger Delta since the beginning of this year, sparking fears that the insurgency is being revived in earnest.

By Charles Kennedy of Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:



Join the discussion | Back to homepage



Leave a comment

Leave a comment

EXXON Mobil -0.35
Open57.81 Trading Vol.6.96M Previous Vol.241.7B
BUY 57.15
Sell 57.00
Oilprice - The No. 1 Source for Oil & Energy News