US oil company ExxonMobil says it has made a “significant discovery” of oil off the coast of Nigeria.
In a tweet it says it could yield up to one billion barrels of oil.
#JustAnnounced an oil discovery of between 500M & 1B barrels offshore Nigeria. Find out more here http://news.exxonmobil.com/press-release/exxonmobil-announces-significant-oil-discovery-offshore-nigeria …
ExxonMobil operates the Owowo oil field, where the discovery was made, and owns just over a quarter of it, the AP news agency reports.
It adds that Nigeria’s state oil company holds the majority share.
Nigeria’s economy is heavily reliant on the proceeds from the oil industry
Rebels have carried out a spate of attacks on oil facilities in Nigeria to demand that poor communities benefit from the oil wealth.