(Video) Oil vessel with 2million barrels capacity explodes in Escravos in Nigeria
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An oil production vessel with 2 million barrels capacity exploded off the coast of Nigeria.
According to local reports, the Trinity Spirit exploded at the Ukpokiti oil field off Nigeria’s coast, near the Escravos terminal close to the River State in the South-South zone of Nigeria.
Dramatic video shows the ship on fire with thick black flames skyrocketing into the sky as it appears to be sinking.
The vessel is an FPSO, floating production storage and offloading unit, owned by Shebah Exploration & Production Company Ltd (Sepcol).
These types of ships are used by the offshore oil and gas industry for the production, processing, and storage of oil and it also serves a similar function to larger oil rigs.
The ship had 10 crew members onboard, Sepcol’s chief executive, Ikemefuna Okafor, said on Thursday, according to Reuters It is not believed the crew members have yet been accounted for.
One industry source active in Nigeria’s oil sector told Reuters the vessel had about 50,000 barrels in storage but was not pumping crude when it exploded.
According to Mr Okafor, investigations were underway to establish the cause of the explosion, while attempts to contain the situation was being made with help from local communities and the oil multinational Chevron, which has a facility nearby.
“At this time, there are no reported fatalities, but we can confirm that there were 10 crewmen on board the vessel prior to the incident and we are prioritising investigations with respect to their safety and security,” he said.
While it is not yet clear how much oil will be spilled by the Trinity Spirit, commentators have warned that Nigeria was now facing its second environmental disaster in three months after a huge oil spill from a disused, capped wellhead released 20,000 barrels of oil a day for a month into the waterways of Nembe, in Nigeria’s Bayelsa state.
The impact of that spill was described by the Nigerian government as being “like Hiroshima”, with the leaking oil causing the death of marine life and damage to mangroves and waterways.
The explosion of the Trinity Spirit is already the fourth major oil spill this year, after disasters in Peru, Ecuador and Thailand.
Sepcol is currently in receivership and, according to the west African website Business Day, is owned by a combination of Nigerian and overseas corporate entities, which include Abbeycourt Trading Company Limited, Abbeycourt Petroleum Company Limited and Allenne Limited.
