American oil giants, Chevron has claimed ownership of the oil wells razed in Ondo State on Thursday.
According to the oil company in a statement issued on Thursday, third-party interference was suspected to have allegedly tempered with its facilities.
It said the affected facility is a joint venture with the Nigeria National Petroleum Company, NNPC in the Southern Senatorial District of Ondo State.
The inferno was said to have spread to communities within the location of the oil wells.
The statement signed by the company’s General Manager, Policy Government and Public Affairs, Esimaje Brikinn, assured that efforts were on towards quenching the fire.
Read full statement below as obtained by TheNewsGuru (TNG).
Chevron Reiterates its Commitment to Protecting People and the Environment
Chevron Nigeria Limited (CNL), operator of the joint venture (JV) between the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and CNL (NNPC/CNL JV) confirms that at about 10:00 p.m. on Thursday, April 18, 2019, a fire was observed at the Ojumole Well No. 1, an idle and plugged well with no flowline connected to it. Ojumole field is in NNPC/CNL JV’s Western Niger Delta area of operations.
CNL conducted an overflight to evaluate the fire and also mobilized emergency responders to assess the site, contain the fire and boom the area. In addition, CNL notified community stakeholders about the incident and also reported it to the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) and other regulatory and security authorities.
A Joint Investigation Visit (JIV) to the site of the incident on Saturday April 20, 2019, by a team made up of regulatory agencies, community stakeholders and CNL, determined that the fire incident was caused by third-party interference. There was no impact to any of the neighboring communities.
CNL is currently working with contractors to safely put out the fire as quickly as possible.
CNL remains committed to the safety of the communities and the environment in its areas of operation. We continue to conduct our operations safely, reliably and efficiently, with utmost consideration for protection of people and the environment.
Esimaje Brikinn,
General Manager, Policy Government & Public Affairs,
Chevron Nigeria Limited
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