Nigeria’s oil export gets boost as Shell lifts Forcados force majeure

Royal Dutch Shell Tuesday lifted the force majeure on exports from the Trans Forcados pipeline, which has been closed since February 2016 after a militant attack on the main export route, a spokeswoman of the company told Reuters Wednesday.

“The Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Ltd (SPDC) lifted the force majeure on crude oil exports from Forcados Terminal,” the firm said in a statement on Wednesday, saying the move was effective from 4 p.m. (1500 GMT) on Tuesday.

“SPDC is grateful to various stakeholders, particularly the federal and Delta State governments, security agencies, NNPC and communities for their support in the repair of the three sabotage leaks on the pipeline,” it said.

The lifting marks the first time in 16 months that all of Nigeria’s oil grades were free of loading disruptions severe enough to require force majeure.

The development is equally expected to bring Nigeria’s oil exports fully online for the first time in 16 months.

The resumption of Forcados, which on average exports 200,000-240,000 barrels per day (bpd), would bring Nigeria to around the 1.8 million-bpd, a level government said it wanted to achieve before joining OPEC output cuts, from which it is now exempt.

The force majeure, a legal declaration that means an operator cannot fulfill a contract due to circumstances outside its control, has hurt Nigeria’s oil export.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and some other producers agreed last month to extend output cuts of about 1.8 million bpd until March. The initial six-month deal had been due to expire at the end of this month.
Nigeria and Libya, whose output has been disrupted by unrest and other factors, were both exempted from the curbs.

Last week, Shell issued a loading programme for June exports that lifted planned exports from Nigeria to 1.75 million bpd, taking it to at least a 15-month high.

However, a trader on Wednesday told Reuters that the programme had been revised higher to 252,000 bpd, putting crude oil exports for the month at 1.8 million bpd.