Sopuruchi Onwuka

Key pipeline that flows produced crude oil along the creeks of Niger Delta to the Bonny export terminal has been restored after it exploded in circumstances that the government linked to political crisis in Rivers State.

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The Trans-Niger Pipeline also called TNP suffered explosion as political wrangling in the host Rivers State reached boiling point, and the suspension of Governor Sim Fubara of the state and his replacement with a sole administrator under an emergency rule declared by President Bola Tinubu appears to test the will of the local militants in the state.

President Tinubu in declaring a state of emergency in the state had pointed at the failure of Governor Fubara to forestall an attack on oil installations after militants issued warnings about boiling political situation in the state.

The TNP channels about 450,000 barrels per day (kbd) of the country’s total liquids production of 1.8 million barrels per day (mbd) from flow stations to the Bonny oil export terminal operated by Shell under the divested NNPC/Shell/Total/Eni joint venture that mines petroleum resources onshore and shallow water Niger Delta.

The explosion in the pipeline comes as the government presses hard on operators in the industry to pump out more oil into the market in addressing the country’s prevailing foreign exchange squeeze and salvaging the Naira from value erosion.

The TNP explosion and government’s harsh response in punishing the state’s government is feared to exacerbate the situation and possibly plunge the region back into armed resistance that finds expression in forms of economic sabotage.

An industry source who spoke with our correspondent on the issue pointed at similar moves by former President Olusegun Obasanjo during the military campaign at Odi in Rivers State. He noted that the military misadventure in the local communities triggered the anger of the youths who immediately signed up for armed struggle.

Our source noted that it took political strategies by the late President Musa Yar’Adua to arrest worsening attacks on oil infrastructure in the country. The Amnesty Programme which was used to placate the local militants, he said, saved the industry from a spate of insecurity that threatened total collapse of operations in the area.

Governor Sim Fubara who is widely perceived by his local Ijaw tribe as a political martyr in the Rivers State appears to have the sympathy of the people whose youths are suspected to be majorly former militants.

However, President Tinubu who is said to have acted on the advice of security forces has flooded the area with strike forces to forestall possible militant attacks, but industry concerns are high over resurgence of militant onslaught by several amorphous groups that hold sway in the area.

Meanwhile, everyone has ceased breath to hear any reaction from known vociferous militant warlords in the area since the executive and legislature of the state were suspended.

A Bloomberg report quoted another industry commentator as saying that Tinubu’s move is not a decisive action, warning that the president “has chosen a quasi-military solution for a political problem.”

The Oracle Today reports that the coincidences of the TNP explosion with political feud between the governor and legislators loyal to the president, the hint by the Renaissance Consortium that the incident is linked to external incursions and the president’s overt move against the governor all point to possibilities of extended battle.

And the terrain of pipeline routes and sundry industry infrastructure in the area makes them vulnerable and leaves operators in trepidation.

For instance, the 180 kilometers (112 miles) TNP cannot be manned by any security arrangement. Even use of drones, remote cameras and other technological devices to mount vigil on oil installations in the past did not yield any result as the terrain made it difficult for prompt incident responses.

While the cause of the explosion is under investigation, sources suggest it could be linked to sabotage, vandalism, or equipment failure.