Barclays Plc’s energy analyst, Miswin Mahesh has said that there’s a “huge risk” of oil production in Nigeria being disrupted by political instability arising from elections scheduled for March 28, Bloomberg reports.

“We are not sure how it will play out on the political front,” Mahesh said. “Nigeria will do whatever it takes to maintain its production. The risks are still there. There is a genuine risk that we might see some disruptions” he said.

Nigeria’s daily output of about two million barrels of oil makes it the continent’s largest producer. Crude generates more than 90 per cent of the nation’s foreign-exchange earnings.

About 800 people were killed and at least 75,000 forced to flee their homes after elections in 2011 that brought Jonathan to power. Already tensions have been building as gunmen attacked an opposition rally in the southern oil-producing Rivers state last month.

Uncertainty over who will control Africa’s biggest economy after the elections and whether they will reassess oil companies’ contracts is a bigger threat to output than an insurgency being waged by militant group Boko Haram, Mahesh said. The fighting has largely been “constrained to the north of Nigeria, whereas most of the oil is in the south,” he said.

President Goodluck Jonathan’s People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and former military ruler, Muhammadu Buhari’s All Progressives Congress (APC) are the leading contenders for the general elections which are to be held on the 28th of this month.

Teneo Intelligence, a New York-based risk-advisory service, also said while it expects the March 28 vote to go ahead despite speculation that it may be delayed further or annulled altogether, its credibility isn’t assured. It also indicated potential clashes could be triggered from compromised elections as a result of rigging. Speculation is rife of political parties buying voter cards from poor people in their opposition’s strongholds, which would deprive them of the right to vote, it said.

However, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation has said that it doesn’t envisage any disruption to production, through its spokesman Ohi Alegbe.

Source: http://energymixreport.com/elections-a-huge-risk-for-nigerias-oil-production-barclays/

How true is this?

i don tire 4 dis election talk here n dere...it shuld jst cme n go so dat Nigeria wil continue 2 live in d small peace we r managin b4

This guyz might b right...
9ja delta boiz wuld certainly start if GEJ loses..

I REALLY WANT NIGERIA TO DIVIDE LET THEM HAVE THEIR ISLAMIST STATE AND PRACTICE THEIR SHARIA THERE, WE'RE NOT ONE AND WE CAN NEVER BE ONE, PLS GOD DIVIDE THIS COUNTRY THAT IS CREATED BY MAN

We don't pray for such.

INEC is trying all they can to make it free and fair.

Let's exercise our voting power to vote in competence and vote out clulessness

menix:
This guyz might b right...
9ja delta boiz wuld certainly start if GEJ loses..

GEJ will not lose.