YEAC tells Shell to address liabilities before onshore divestment
Port Harcourt -- The Youths and Environmental Advocacy Centre, YEAC Nigeria, has urged Shell to address all the liabilities, ranging from environmental pollution and community equity in the Niger Delta, before divesting its onshore subsidiary in Nigeria.
This is as Shell announced plans to sell its Nigerian onshore oil and gas subsidiary in Nigeria the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited, SPDC - to Renaissance, a consortium of five companies, for the sum of $2.4 billion.
Renaissance, made up of five indigenous oil operators, namely ND Western, Aradel Energy, First E&P, Waltersmith and Petrolin, will pay $1.3 billion for consideration, according to Shell, and an additional payment of $1.1 billion relating to prior receivables at completion.
But in a swift reaction, YEACNigeria said the British oil firm was free to sell its onshore oil stake in Nigeria to any prospective buyer, provided issues around liabilities of Shell in its host communities were addressed.
Executive Director of YEACNigeria, Mr. Fyneface Dumnamene Fyneface, urged the Federal Government not to approve the sale of SPDC by Shell until there is a blueprint on liability and community equity.
Fyneface said and called on the Federal Government not to approve the proposed sale of Shell onshore business facilities till all issues relating to liabilities have been addressed with communities in the Niger Delta through a blueprint presented as part of the ownership transfer process.
"Shell has lots of liabilities especially those relating to Court judgements for payment of compensation to communities which they polluted, as well as oil spill cleanup cases which they need to address before talking about the sale of their onshore oil stake.
"For instance, the Ebubu community in Ogoni has an oil spill case in which Shell was expected to make compensation following a court judgment, but that has not been properly addressed, and the company cannot go ahead to sell its facilities without addressing associated liabilities which the new buyers may not want to inherit," he said.