Lagos (Platts)--27Mar2009

Nigeria's Joint Task Force, a special military outfit that tackles unrest
in the oil-rich Niger Delta, warned Friday that militants were planning fresh
attacks on oil and gas production facilities in the area.

The attacks would be in response to last week's raid by the military on a
major militant camp in Abiteye in the Warri South West Local Government Area,
the JTF said in a statement. The area is US oil major Chevron's key
operational base.

"The militant group led by Kingsley Opuye is planning a reprisal attack
on oil and gas installations as well as military formations in the Niger
Delta," the statement said. "The aggrieved militants are planning to attack
the economic assets of the government and military formations in the oil-rich
region as a form of reprisal for being dislodged from their camp by the troops
of the JTF."

Troops were, however, ready to thwart any planned attack, the JTF said.

Last week, the JTF seized a large cache of arms and ammunition following
its raid on the militants' camp.

Violence in the Niger Delta has hit the country's oil production in
recent years. Finance Minister Mansur Muhtar said Tuesday that Nigeria's oil
production averaged around 1.6 million b/d so far this year. The government's
projected output for 2009 is 2.29 million b/d.

Many international oil companies and other firms have had to move staff
away from the Niger Delta because of the deteriorating situation there. On
Tuesday, oil workers' unions Pengassan and Nupeng called off a strike after
the government promised to boost security in the Niger Delta.
--Staff, newsdesk@platts.com