Shell lifts force majeure on gas for Nigeria LNG

Shell has lifted a force majeure on gas supplies to the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) plant. The company declared force majeure on May 16 after a leak along the Eastern Gas Gathering System near Awoba in Rivers State. It affected 1.5 billion standard cubic feet of gas per day. That declaration came just less than a month after it had lifted a force majeure on supplies to the plant, during a time in which Shell was reporting growing attacks on pipelines by oil thieves.

Mobil Lifts Force Majeure on Qua Iboe Oil Exports

Mobil Producing Nigeria has lifted its force majeure on Qua Iboe crude exports. The oil giant, on November 20, declared the force majeure on oil exports attributing it to the difficulty in meeting projected oil lifting, due to the repair work on a section of its pipeline affected in the November 9 oil release offshore Akwa Ibom.

The force majeure is a legal step that protects a company from liability when it cannot fulfill a contract for reasons beyond its control.

The US oil major operates two offshore oil blocks and a 960, 000 barrels per day crude export terminal, off the Akwa Ibom coastline. The company had shut down the affected facility to prevent damage to the environment.

Total confirms sale of some Nigerian Assets

Total has confirmed that the firm was in talks to sell its assets in Nigeria, worth about $2.4 billion. However, Total CEO, Christophe de Margerie, declined to name the potential buyer or value of the deal but saying he would not deny the earlier report about the sale. According to him, “it doesn't mean we are scared and intend to start some kind of walk out of Nigeria...Total is happy to develop its projects in Nigeria”.

Nigeria is Africa's largest crude oil exporter and oil companies operating there have long had to deal with attacks on their pipelines and staff, with the country's worst floods in 50 years seriously affecting their output in recent weeks.

Total declared force majeure in mid-October on gas supplies to the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas’ (NLNG) liquefaction plant, saying it had stopped oil and gas production from Oil Mining Lease (OML) 58, which was losing 90,000 barrels per day (bpd) of oil equivalent, in which it has a 40-per-cent stake.