Briton, American kidnapped from oil ship in Nigeria

LAGOS, Nov 2 (Reuters) Armed attackers kidnapped a Briton and an American today from an oil industry ship off the coast of Nigeria's southern state of Bayelsa, authorities said.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the abduction, the latest in a wave of attacks on foreigners in the world's eighth largest oil exporter which has forced hundreds of workers to pull out and cut oil output by 500,000 barrels a day.

''Two PGS employees are kidnapped -- one American and one Briton.

We are doing everything we can to resolve this and have mobilised our emergency team,'' said Ola Bosterud, a spokesman for Petroleum Geo-Services in Oslo.

''We have not received any demands from the kidnappers.'' The gunmen came in six boats in the early hours of Tuesday morning and took only the two men, leaving other members of the ship's crew unharmed.

Bayelsa is one of Nigeria's top oil producing states at the heart of the Niger Delta, a vast wetlands region which is home to all of Nigeria's petroleum wealth.

Several recent abductions in the delta have been motivated by ransom. Disputes between oil companies and local communities over jobs and other benefits often also play a role.

''I think it was a community-related incident rather than militants,'' an oil industry source said, adding that some of the attackers had been identified by witnesses.

Violence in the Niger Delta is rooted in poverty, corruption and lawlessness. Many residents of the impoverished region resent the multibillion-dollar industry, which has damaged their environment but brought them few benefits.

However, the violence has taken on a momentum of its own. Turf wars over control of a lucrative trade in stolen crude, abductions for ransom, sabotage and thuggery fomented for political ends are all part of the equation.

Analysts expect the situation to deteriorate further in the run-up to general elections in April.

Militant group Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, whose attacks and abductions in February forced Royal Dutch Shell to reduce output by 500,000 barrels a day, said it was not responsible for the latest kidnapping.

In an email to Reuters, the group said it intended to resume attacks and take more hostages from next week.

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