TheCable

Niger Delta Avengers are said to be currently responsible for rising crude oil prices on the global market.

The militants group has cut Nigeria’s supply drastically, reducing global oversupply.

The ministry of petroleum resources put the country’s estimated crude oil output for a major part of 2016 at 2.2 million barrels per day.

However, Nigeria is currently producing about 800,000 barrels below its estimated levels for 2016.

Energy Information Administration (EIA) data has shown that a drop of 500,000 barrels in the supply of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) oil often leads to a surge in prices.

According to UK Business Insider: “Oil prices are close to hitting $50 per barrel for the first time since November — but it has nothing to do with Saudi Arabia and Iran cutting oil production, as so much of the market has hoped”.

“It’s all down to Nigerian militants,” the newspaper said on Wednesday.

Nigeria lost its place as Africa’s largest oil producer earlier in May.

Speaking at the house of representatives in Abuja on Monday, Ibe Kachikwu, minister of state for petroleum resources, said the country was currently producing at 1.4 million barrels per day.

He added that Nigeria’s upstream rigs production had fallen to zero.

“I do share the sentiments of many Nigerians, that the country that produces 2.2 million barrels should not be in the business of importing petroleum products,” he said.

“We need to begin to look at our upstream, we have unwittingly killed the upstream. Today, there’s no single rig operating in Nigeria. All the rigs are gone.

“When the rigs are gone, it means that no meaningful exploration can take place.”

Two weeks ago, Shell Nigeria declared force majeure, halting production along its Nembe Creek trunk line.