Asset Sale: Activists demand Shell addresses Niger Delta ecological, health concerns

Against the backdrop of a recent announcement by Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) of plans to sell off its onshore assets in Nigeria, the Home of Mother Earth Foundation (Homef) is leading other environmental activists to insist that Shell must address concerns over ecological, health, and other impacts in the Niger Delta before selling.

The civil society organisations stated that having worked in the Niger Delta in the context of oil and gas extraction and its attendant ecological, economic, social, and health impacts, they keenly observed the scheming by Shell to sell off its onshore assets in Nigeria, despite clear protestations by communities and civil society organisations.

They said Shell was following in the footsteps of Chevron, Total Energy, and ExxonMobil to sell off “oil assets” in the Niger Delta.

“While we acknowledge that businesses have the right to dispose of their assets as they see fit, we are concerned about the manner in which this transaction is carried out, as well as the immediate and long-term implications for communities and the cause of ecological justice,” the CSOs stated.

Shell recently announced on its website and social media platform X that it had reached an agreement to sell its Nigerian onshore subsidiary SPDC to a consortium of domestic and international oil companies for a total net fee of $2.8 billion.

Even though the finalisation of the transaction is dependent on the approval of the Federal Government, the CSOs raised concerns that “communities, which Shell often refers to as its ‘hosts’ and have endured the impacts and inconvenience of oil extraction for over six decades, have not been consulted or informed of this planned sale;

“That Shell has persistently engaged in irresponsible and reckless hydrocarbon extraction practices resulting in severe ecological, health, and economic consequences.

“Multiple inquiries have determined that the corporation and its associates are responsible for causing environmental destruction that has devastated people’s means of living, contaminated communities, and facilitated situations that violate human rights;

“Up until now, the Nigerian government and its regulatory agencies have failed to come up with a guide, policy, or blueprint establishing the conditions and modalities for oil company divestments.”

In a statement made available to the Nigerian Tribune in Port Harcourt, Homef and the five other non-governmental organisations stressed that “divestments, including the latest by Shell, have happened haphazardly and in manners solely determined by oil companies, paying little or no attention to the broader ecological, economic, and social impacts that their activities have bequeathed to communities.”

“While Shell continues to downplay its role in the ecological damage of the Niger Delta, assessments by reputable organisations have indicated the company is responsible for environmental pollution.

In 2011, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) released its findings on the impacts of hydrocarbon pollution in Ogoniland, an area operated by Shell.

“The assessment revealed severe contamination of drinking water sources and the exposure of communities to health risks. Drinking water was found to contain cancer-causing benzene 900 times above permitted levels.”

The group therefore recommended that “the federal government should immediately place a moratorium on all oil company divestment (or sale of assets) in the Niger Delta, pending the ascertaining of issues of community concern.

“The federal government should immediately produce a framework and guide for how oil companies disengage from areas where they have operated.

This guide should be developed by a multi-stakeholder group, including communities and civil society organisations.”

YOU SHOULD NOT MISS THESE HEADLINES FROM NIGERIAN TRIBUNE

FULL LIST: 45 visa-free countries Nigerian passport can travel in 2024

Nigeria sits behind Ghana, Guinea, Kenya, Lesotho, Morocco, Benin Republic and Namibia which are at…

How my brother and I became professor same day in same varsity —UNILORIN don

Recently, two brothers –Ahmed Oloduowo Ameen and Mubarak Oloduowo Ameen– were promoted to…

‘I expected N2,000 as my share from sale of human head we got at Saki cemetery’

Thirty-two-year-old Alli and Abdullahi, aged 35, who were the two suspects arrested by…

Why Port Harcourt refinery is yet to start production—Soneye, NNPCL Chief Comm Officer

Mr Femi Soneye is the Chief Corporate Communications Officer (CCCO) of the…

Fear women, fair women and Minister Ojo

Betta Edu, Sadiya Umar-Farouq and Halima Shehu are the reigning women in our…

What you should know about players in Nigerian 2024 AFCON team

The Nigerian football team have appeared in the finals of the Africa Cup of Nations on twenty different occasions. Nigeria has…