Royal Dutch Shell on Thursday shut down a flowstation producing some 37,800 barrels of oil per day ( bpd) in southern Nigeria after a nearby well caught fire, a company statement said.

"A fire incident was reported at a well at SPDC's (Shell's subsidiary in Nigeria) Cawthorne Channel field early this morning, " the statement said. "A nearby flowstation, Cawthorne Channel-1 has been shut down as part of efforts to contain the blaze. This has resulted in a deferment of some 37, 800 bpd."

So far, the fire has been put out but the flowstation, which is located in the southern state of Rivers, remains shut, while the cause of the incident is not known, a Shell spokesman said.

"We have informed the relevant government agencies of the incident. The cause of the fire, volume of oil spilled and the effects are being investigated," the statement added.

Nigeria is the biggest oil producer in Africa with a daily output of 2.5 million barrels, while Shell accounts for half of the country's oil production.

Shell was already losing some 106,000 bpd in production due to the shutdown of four flowstations in adjacent Bayelsa state following local militia attacks last month.

Source: Xinhua