Authorities from Colombia’s northeastern state of Arauca confirmed a new attack allegedly by Colombia’s second largest rebel group ELN against the infrastructure of the Caño Limon-Coveñas oil pipeline, local media reported on Wednesday.
The attack occurred within a stretch of the pipeline located in the municipality of Tame, where unidentified persons activated various explosive caches that stopped the production and pumping of crude oil, according to Colombia’s El Espectador newspaper.
Authorities hold the guerrillas of the ELN responsible for the attack and announced the temporary halt of oil pumping due to low pressure inside the disabled pipes.
Wednesday’s attack comes on the heels of a separate assault five days ago on the same oil pipeline, which occurred in a section of the pipeline located in the village of El Paso, Catatumbo in the state of Norte de Santander, El Espectador reported.
MORE: Forest fire erupts after guerrilla attack on pipeline in northeast Colombia
Orlando Cabrales, Colombia’s Vice-Minister of Mining and Energy, indicated that previous attacks against the oil pipelines affected the production of crude oil in April and May.
“The production of crude oil in Colombia during May was 950 thousand barrels daily, completing three months of under one million barrels a day. The country has recorded this data specifically from oil pipelines such as Caño Limon; nevertheless, one must clarify that the country is completely prepared to continue operating normally,” Cabrales said.
2014 has recorded 26 attacks so far against pipeline infrastructures in the same region of Colombia, according to El Espectador.
MORE: ELN bomb Colombia oil pipeline infrastructure
Sources
- Nuevo atentado del ELN contra oleoducto Caño Limón-Coveñas (El Espectador)