‘Worrisome, Untrue’ – Community Denies Fresh Pipeline Explosion In Rivers

The people of Soku community in Rivers State have dismissed reports circulating on social media that an explosion occurred on gas pipelines along the Soku-Abua-Rumuji Right of Way.

The Soku oil and gas field, which forms a critical part of Oil Mining Licence (OML) 23, is a joint venture between Eni, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPCL), Shell, and TotalEnergies.

Witness Alasia, the Secretary of the Soku Community Development Committee, released a statement in Port Harcourt on Sunday, labeling the reports as “disheartening and worrisome, untrue and not factual.”

Alasia further clarified that while there was a fire outbreak on the pipeline, there was no cause for concern. He explained that the pipeline in question is owned by the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas Limited (NLNG) and is responsible for transporting gas from the Soku Gas Plant to NLNG’s gas liquefaction plant in Bonny Island, Rivers State.

In his statement, Alasia emphasized: “On behalf of the Leadership of Soku Kingdom, I write to debunk the falsehood escalating in all social media that there was an explosion in the Soku Gas Plant. It is disheartening and worrisome that people will mischievously be misinforming the public with a baseless and untrue story. Soku Gas Plant is safe and in perfect working condition. The public should disregard this unguided and untrue report.”

He also mentioned that while the cause of the fire outbreak is still unknown, the company has yet to provide any relevant information. He assured the public: “We use this medium to inform the public that Soku and her satellite communities are safe and calm.”

In a related development, the Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) has also refuted claims of an explosion at the Soku Gas Plant.

SPDC’s spokesman, Michael Adande, confirmed that no such incident had occurred at the Soku Gas Plant, stating that Shell’s assets in the region had been divested to Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited.

Adande said: “All good at Soku Gas Plant. Soku Gas Plant is not affected by any incident. Hope you know that SPDC assets have been officially acquired by Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited. We have been in the news about this.”

He further clarified that there are other facilities in the Soku Field, and should any incidents arise at those facilities, the respective asset owners should be contacted.

“If there was an incident on other assets in Soku, please, contact the asset owner/operator,” he added.