The Nation Newspaper

Tag: shell

  • Court sets aside $2.5b judgment by Shell, Esso against NNPC

    Court sets aside $2.5b judgment by Shell, Esso against NNPC

    The Court of Appeal in Abuja has set aside a portion of an arbitral award got by Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Limited (Shell) and Esso Exploration and production Limited (Esso) against the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

    By the portion of the award, made by an arbitration tribunal in Lagos on October 24, 2011, NNPC was ordered among others, to pay Shell and Esso over $2.5billion for abusing a Production Sharing Contract (PSC) between them in relation to the operation of an oil filed identified as Erha Deepwater Project.

    Shell and Esso particularly, accused NNPC of assuming their responsibilities, under the PSC, including determining what should be paid to the Nigerian government as petroleum profit tax (PPT), and that in so doing, NNPC over lifted petroleum products valued at $1,207,500,000 to pay its unilaterally assessed tax on their behalf (Shell and Esso).

    On learning about the Shell and Esso case against NNPC, which will require it to refund the tax paid to it by NNPC on behalf of Shell and Esso, the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) went before the Federal High Court in Abuja, in suit No: FHC/AB/CS/764/11, to challenge the aspect of the arbitral proceedings relating to tax issues.

    The arbitration tribunal, at the end of its proceedings on October 24, 211, ordered NNPC to pay Esso and Shell $1,799,000,000, “with simple interest at the rate of 30-day LIBOR plus 4per cent from December 17, 2007 (the date of breach) until April 30, 2011,” estimated at $243,000,000.

    It asked NNPC to pay another “simple interest at the rate of 30-day LIBOR plus 4per cent on the $1,799,000,000 from April 30, 2011 up until the date of payment;” and a further “sum determined by the volume and value of over lifting by the respondent that has taken place since April 30, 2011 and until the date of this final award, plus simple interest at the rate of 30-day LIBOR plus 4per cent from April 30, 2011 up until the date of payment.”

    However, in his judgment on March 9, 2012 on the suit by FIRS, Justice Adamu Bello (now retired) of the Federal High Court, Abuja set aside the October 24, 2011 arbitral award/judgment on the ground that the arbitration tribunal lacked the jurisdiction to have entertained dispute relating to tax, a decision Shell and Esso appealed to the Court of Appeal, Abuja.

    The Court of Appeal, in a unanimous judgment of a three-man panel on March 10 this year, a copy of which The Nation accessed last Friday, set aside the monetary award against NNPC, held that oil companies lacked the power to determine what profit tax to pay and that such responsibilities reside solely with the FIRS under the country’s laws.

  • Court sets aside $2.5b judgment awarded to Shell, Esso against NNPC

    Court sets aside $2.5b judgment awarded to Shell, Esso against NNPC

    •Judges say oil firms can’t determine what to pay as tax
    •FIRS’ sole right to assess petroleum profit tax upheld

    THE Court of Appeal in Abuja has set aside a portion of an arbitral award got by Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Limited (Shell) and Esso Exploration and Production Limited (Esso) against the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

    By the portion of the award, made by an arbitration tribunal in Lagos on October 24, 2011, NNPC was ordered,  among others, to pay Shell and Esso over $2.5 billion for abusing a Production Sharing Contract (PSC) between them in relation to the operation of an oil field identified as Erha Deepwater Project.

    Shell and Esso particularly accused NNPC of assuming their responsibilities, under the PSC, including determining what should be paid to the Nigerian government as petroleum profit tax (PPT), and that in so doing, NNPC over-lifted petroleum products valued at $1,207,500,000 to pay its unilaterally assessed tax on their behalf (Shell and Esso).

    On learning about the Shell and Esso case against NNPC, which will require it to refund the tax paid to it by NNPC on behalf of Shell and Esso, the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) went before the Federal High Court in Abuja to challenge the aspect of the arbitral proceedings relating to tax issues.

    The arbitration tribunal, at the end of its proceedings on October 24, 2011, ordered NNPC to pay Esso and Shell $1,799,000,000, “with simple interest at the rate of 30-day LIBOR plus four per cent from December 17, 2007 (the date of breach) until April 30, 2011,” estimated at $243,000,000.

    It asked NNPC to pay another “simple interest at the rate of 30-day LIBOR plus four per cent on the $1,799,000,000 from April 30, 2011 up until the date of payment;” and a further “sum determined by the volume and value of over-lifting by the respondent that has taken place since April 30, 2011 and until the date of this final award, plus simple interest at the rate of 30-day LIBOR plus four per cent from April 30, 2011 up until the date of payment”.

    However, in his judgment on March 9, 2012 on the suit by FIRS, Justice Adamu Bello (now retired) of the Federal High Court, Abuja set aside the October 24, 2011 arbitral award/judgment on the ground that the arbitration tribunal lacked the jurisdiction to have entertained dispute relating to tax, a decision Shell and Esso appealed to the Court of Appeal, Abuja.

    The Court of Appeal, in a unanimous judgment of a three-man panel on March 10 this year, a copy of which The Nation accessed last Friday, set aside the monetary award against NNPC, held that oil companies lacked the power to determine what profit tax to pay and that such responsibilities reside solely with the FIRS under the country’s laws.

    Justice Emmanuel Akomaye Agim, in the lead judgment, faulted the exercise of jurisdiction over a tax related dispute by an arbitration tribunal.

    He noted: “The payment of petroleum profit tax (PPT) by parties to a production sharing contract is not governed by the Arbitration and Conciliation Act.

    “The assessment and determination of the PPT payable and the collection of such tax are governed by the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) Act and Petroleum Profit Tax (PPT) Act.”

    Justice Agim said FIRS was right to have challenged the arbitral proceedings while it was still on, because it relation to tax dispute, which an arbitration tribunal lacked jurisdiction to entertain.

    He said the order by the arbitral tribunal that NNPC cease making tax payments inconsistent with PPT returns prepared by the appellants, one of the reliefs claimed for by the appellants in the tribunal, takes away the discretionary power given the FIRS by Section 35(2) & (3) of the PPT Act, to accept returns filed with it and assess a tax payer’s tax liability on the basis of them or refuse to accept the returns, assess the tax payable on its own best judgment.

    Justice Agim said: “This relief has the effect of taking away completely the 1st respondent’s statutory power to assess and determine the tax payable vested in it (FIRS) by Section 35, 36 and 37 of the PPT Act and Section 43(1) of the same Act, which makes the assessment by the 1st respondent final and conclusive.

    “The order defeats the operation of sections 52 and 53 of the PPT Act, which makes the filing of inaccurate PPT returns an offence.

    “Therefore, the duty of the parties to the PSC to pay the PPT for the contract area and the exercise of the statutory powers of the 1st respondent to assess, determine and collect petroleum profit tax from oil producing companies in Nigeria and the non-refundability of paid PPT, except the part considered as overpayment, not arbitrable,” Justice Agim said.

    He faulted the decision by Shell and Esso to refer to an arbitration tribunal, their grievance over the way NNPC handled the issues of tax assessment and payment.

    Justice Agim noted where oil companies have issues with tax assessment by FIRS, they can, by virtue of the provisions of sections 42 and 43 of the PPT Act, appeal to Tax Appeal Commissioners, and further to the Federal High Court for the finality and conclusiveness of the assessment.

    He said: “On the whole, this appeal succeeds in part and fails in part. The judgment of the Federal High Court at Abuja in suit No: FHC/AB/CS/764 delivered on March 9, 2012 by A. Bello J. (Justice A. Bello), nullifying the entire arbitration agreement between the appellants and 2nd respondent, the arbitration proceedings and the award is hereby set aside, except as it affects the request or claims for reliefs F, H and I in the arbitration proceedings and the award of the same reliefs by the arbitral tribunal.

    “For the avoidance of doubt, the judgement nullifying the request for reliefs F, H & I in the arbitration proceedings and the award of these reliefs by the arbitral tribunal is upheld and affirmed.

    “The part of the judgment dismissing the preliminary objection to the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court to entertain and determine the suit is affirmed and upheld in respect of the request for reliefs F, H & I in the arbitration proceedings,” Justice Agim said.

    Justices Tinuade Akomolafe-Wilson and Tani Yusuf Hassan, who were on the panel, agreed with Justice Agim’s reasoning in the lead judgment.

  • How we support gas production, by Shell

    How we support gas production, by Shell

    Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) Joint Venture is developing various gas projects to support domestic consumption, especially by industrial concerns and power generating firms, it was learnt.

    Shell, in a document obtained by The Nation, noted that several projects are ongoing, which will aid the development of about 2.8 trillion standard cubic feet (scf) of non-associated gas.

    Entitled: Shell’s role in supplying gas to markets, it shows the oil giant’s gas production dropped in 2016 compared to 2015 due to security issues.

    It said: “Shell companies in Nigeria have played a pioneering role in onshore, shallow and deepwater gas exploration and production and its delivery to domestic consumers and later, export markets since the early 1960s. Since 2010, the SPDC JV has also been producing at Gbaran Ubie integrated oil and gas plant in Bayelsa State, which has the capacity to process one billion standard cubic feet of gas per day for the domestic and export markets. Several projects are currently underway at Gbaran Ubie and nearby Kolo Creek and at Soku to develop around 2.8 trillion scf of non-associated gas. Natural gas in a reservoir which contains no crude oil is called non-associated gas.

    “This additional gas infrastructure will be used to sustain gas supply to the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) plant at Bonny and continue to fuel 225megawatts (Mw) capacity power plant built in Gbaran by the Federal Government under the National Integrated Power Project.

    “The SPDC JV also produced more gas in from the Agbada Early Gas Production Facility, which is expected to further boost gas availability on the eastern Niger Delta domestic gas network and enhance power generation by over 150Mw of electricity. In addition, the SPDC JV operated Okoloma gas plant supplies gas to the Afam VI power plant, which alone contributed approximately 12 per cent of Nigeria’s grid-connected electricity in 2016. Afam VI uses combined cycle gas turbine technology that burns 40 per cent less gas than plants using older open cycle technologies. This also contributes significantly to the reduction of greenhouse gas emission.”

    Shell companies in Nigeria, according to the report, remain committed to working with the Federal Government to increase gas supply to domestic market. For example, the Assa North/Ohaji South project in Imo State, which is a joint development involving SPDC, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and Seplat Petroleum Development Company, a leading indigenous producer, has the potential to be one of the largest domestic gas projects in the country, supplying 600 million scf per day. This translates into almost 2,400Mw of potential electricity generation when it comes to fruition.

    Other Shell companies in Nigeria continue to play a crucial role in the national energy gas mix. The Bonga deepwater field operated by Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company Limited (SNEPCo) produces gas that is piped from the Bonga floating production, storage and offloading facility to the NLNG plant on Bonny Island, it added.

    Also Shell Nigeria Gas Limited (SNG) supplies natural gas as fuel for various industrial processes and power generation in Nigeria. In 2016, SNG distributed an average of 33 million standard cubic feet a day (mmscfd) of natural gas against 42mmscfd in 2015 to industries and factories in its areas of operation in Ogun, Abia and Rivers states.

    The lower supply volume in 2016 was due to damage to equipment from attacks on oil and gas facilities in the Niger Delta. SNG also supplies natural gas to private companies that specialise in the delivery of compressed natural gas to industries located far from existing pipelines. SNG carries out its operations with an all-Nigerian staff and engages the services of a range of Nigerian companies as contractors, it said.

     

  • Shell: crude oil theft droped by over 200% in 2006

    Crude oil theft in the Niger Delta has fallen, following increased pipelines monitoring by the security forces in the region and reduction in production, The Nation has learnt.

    Shell Petroleum Development Company Limited (SPDC), in a document made available to The Nation, noted that crude oil theft from its facilities reduced drastically last year by over 200 per cent compared to what obtained in 2015. Relatively, oil spills caused by sabotage also dropped by over 100 per cent compared to the previous year.

    SPDC said: “Crude oil theft on the pipeline network resulted in a loss of about 5,660 barrels of oil per day (bpd) in 2016, which is less than the 25,000bpd in 2015. The number of sabotage-related spills declined to 45 compared with 93 in 2015.

    “The reduction in oil theft and sabotage-related spills from the previous year can be attributed to continued improvements in air and ground surveillance and response by government security forces, lower production levels of SPDC Joint Venture (JV) operations in the western part of the Niger Delta due to acts of sabotage and the divestment in 2015 of the Nembe Creek.”

    Shell, however, insisted that sabotage was responsible for about 90 per cent of the spills. It said oil spills due to crude oil theft and sabotage of facilities, also referred to as third party interference, as well as illegal refining cause the most environmental damage from oil and gas operations in the Niger Delta.

    “Irrespective of cause, the SPDC JV cleans up and remediates areas affected by spills originating from its facilities. The spills are sometimes made worse where there are access challenges to the incident sites to investigate and stop leaks. Third party interference on pipelines and other infrastructure was responsible for 90 per cent of spill incidents of more than 100 kilogrammes from SPDC JV facilities in 2016.

    “A key priority for Shell is to achieve the goal of no spills from its operations. No spill is acceptable and we work hard to prevent them. Shell Companies in Nigeria operate under the same standards as all other Shell-operated ventures globally. Regrettably, in addition to spills caused by criminal activitythere were seven operational spills of more than 100 kilogrammes in volume from Shell Companies in Nigeria facilities during 2016. This number is less than the 16 spills in 2015, due to continued progress on preventing operational spills, such as regular inspections and maintenance of pipelines. In 2016, the total volume of oil spilled from operational incidents remained at 0.2 thousand tones, the same as 2015. These numbers include one spill of 0.15 thousand tones caused by an unintentional third party damage to a SPDC JV pipeline.”

    To reduce spills, Shell said it was focusing on the implementation of its work to appraise, maintain and replace key sections of pipelines and flowlines. It noted that 57- and 42-kilometre flowlines and pipelines were installed last year bringing the total distance of flowlines and pipelines replaced over the last five years to almost 1000 kilometres.

    “SPDC continues to undertake initiatives to preventand minimise spills caused by theft and sabotage of its facilities in the Niger Delta. In 2016, we sustained on-ground surveillance efforts on SPDC JV’s areas of operations, including its pipeline network, to mitigate incidences of third-party interference and ensure that spills are detected and responded to as quickly as possible.

    “There are also daily over-flights of the pipeline network areas to identify any new spill incident or activities. We have also installed state-of-the-art high definition camera to a  an helicopter that greatly improves the surveillance of our assets and have implemented anti-theft protection mechanisms on key infrastructure,” Shell said.

  • Rivers communities sue Shell for N11.7b over oil spillage

    • Firm alleges wrong party was sued

    Some communities in Rivers State have sued the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited for £30 million (about N11.717 billion) over alleged oil spillages which they said destroyed their environment and water system.

    They are praying for a declaration that the “continuous” oil spills that occurred on August 28, 2008, December 7, 2008 and February 19, 2009 is hazardous, constitutes a nuisance, economic loss to them.

    The plaintiffs, who sued through their lawyer Dr Paul Ananaba (SAN), are Bonu, Lewe, Gbe, Mogho, Kpor, Kporghor and Norkwiri coastal communities in Gokana, Khana and Tai Local Government Areas of Rivers State.

    The suit is before Justice Chuka Obiozor of the Federal High Court in Lagos.

    The communities are praying the court to hold that they have suffered serious damage and injuries as a result of the continuous oil spills “which remains unabated till date as a result of oil exploration activities of the defendant on the 24 Bomu-Bonny SPDC Trans Niger Pipeline at Silvilagbara and Bodo Bia Barima”.

    The suit was filed on their behalf by His Royal Highness Mene Charles Tenalo, Chief Maxwell Lekagha, Chief Mene Gbigha, Chief Benedict Barima and Mr. David Affi.

    They are demanding £30million and N11.6billion as general and special damages,as well as N1billion as the cost of filing the suit.

    The communities seek an order of perpetual injunction restraining the oil company from further polluting, destroying, damaging or eroding their communities.

    The plaintiffs claimed that about 3,900 barrels of crude oil was spilled into their environment on a daily basis over a period of two months.

    The spillage, they claimed, destroyed marine lives in the communities over a space of 9,230 hectares.

    They said the oil spillage led to the contamination of their farmlands along the coastal areas, which in turn affected farm production and yields due to toxic substances deposited in the soil and ground water.

    They also alleged that oil spillages resulted in “high concentration of hydrocarbons in water and sediment that exceeded Nigerian and international legal standard hydrocarbon contamination rates by a significant margin.”

    The plaintiffs said “the failure, neglect and refusal of the defendant to accede to their demands as regards the said oil spills have led to serious crises in their communities, as their youths have resorted to violence, burning houses, threatening and embarrassing their leaders.”

    Shell, through its counsel, filed a preliminary objection to the suit on the basis that the action was served on a wrong party.

    The defendant said its name was not properly specified in the suit.

    But the claimant has applied to the court to amend the suit to properly identify Shell. Justice Obiozor adjourned until June 14 for mention.

  • Shell pays $29b to Fed Govt

    The Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC) operated Joint Venture (JV) contributed $29 billion to Federal Government’s coffer between 2012 and 2016, the Country Chair, Shell Companies in Nigeria (SCiN) and Managing Director of SPDC, Osagie Okunbor, has said .

    He spoke during the presentation of 2017 Shell in Nigeria briefing notes in Lagos yesterday. The briefing notes highlight the firm’s operations scorecard. According to him, Shell remains  committed to the development of Nigeria. The SPDC operated JV alone contributed $29 billion to the Nigerian purse between 2012 and 2016. Also last year, the royalties and corporate taxes paid by SCiN to the Federal Government came to $1.4 billion (SPDC $1.0 billion and Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCo) $0.4 billion).

    He said: “Shell has been operating in Nigeria for more than 50 years. And it is not by chance that we have remained deeply committed to the development of Nigeria, her people and her economy by efficiently and responsibly producing oil and gas in onshore and offshore as well as distributing gas to industries and producing liquefied natural gas for export.

    “The determination of Shell to support the monetisation of the nation’s huge gas resources led it to establish Shell Nigeria Gas in 1998, which now supplies gas to about 90 industrial customers in Ogun, Rivers and Abia states. The gas is used for power generation and processing by industries for the manufacture of domestic products ranging from household consumables, to household utensils and hardware.

  • Shell pays $29b to Fed Govt

    Shell pays $29b to Fed Govt

    • Oil giant laments security issues in Niger Delta

    Oil giant Royal Dutch Shell said its Nigerian subsidiary, Shell Petroleum Development Company Limited (SPDC) and Joint Venture (JV) partners, paid $29 billion to the Federal Government over the last five years.

    This is contained in the oil majors 2016 Sustainability Report released yesterday. The report said the $29 billion was the economic contribution from  SPDC JV partners to the government from 2012–2016.

    It stated that $1.4 billion was Shell’s share of royalties and corporate taxes paid to the government last year, adding that  SPDC’s share was $1billion, while Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCo) contributed $0.4 billion.

    Also SPDC JV and SNEPCo contributed $106.8 million to Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) last year, pointing out that $48.5 million was Shell’s share.

    It also noted that 94 per cent of contracts from Shell Companies in Nigeria (SCiN) were awarded to indigenous companies, adding that $0.74 billion was spent by SCiN on contracts awarded to local companies. Besides, it stated that 96 per cent employees of SCiN are Nigerians.

    Shell stated that safety and security remain its top priorities and lamented that sabotage and vandalism caused a reduction in onshore oil and gas production last year.

    “Shell has interests in several companies in Nigeria and they are major contributors to the economy. They produce oil and natural gas, distribute gas to industries in the country, produce liquefied natural gas (LNG) for export, generate revenues for the government and provide social investment. The Shell companies are also working with federal and state government agencies, communities and civil society to try to create a safe operating environment.

    “SCiN continue to operate both onshore and offshore oil activities in the country, while investing in oil and gas production. SCiN are also working with the government and other partners to increasingly focus on developing gas production onshore and delivering gas to power plants and other industrial customers in order to drive economic growth,” the report added.

    It said SPDC JV had a challenging 2016 due to further acts of sabotage and vandalism on oil and gas facilities in parts of the Niger Delta. As a result, oil and gas production from domestic and international operators declined sharply in the year.

    “Export operations at the SPDC-operated Forcados oil terminal were disrupted after three sabotage incidents in 2016. This resulted in loss of revenue, particularly for domestic producers who rely on the terminal for export. Reduced oil and gas production in the Niger Delta also led to lower revenues for state and federal government and major disruptions to gas supply needed to power electricity for industry, businesses and public sector services.

    “The safety of staff and contractors in Nigeria remains the top priority. The SCiN aim to mitigate security risks that may impact people, the environment and facilities. We only carry out operations where it is safe to do so. We also continue to engage with the government and non-governmental organisations (NGOs), as well as local communities, to help promote human rights and a peaceful and safe operating environment.

  • Shell hires Dormalong, others for Bonga TAM

    Shell hires Dormalong, others for Bonga TAM

    Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCo) has hired some indigenous service firms, including Dormanlong, to work on its Bonga facility, FPSO (the floating production, storage and offloading vessel), undergoing turnaround maintenance (TAM), it was learnt.
    SNEPCo Managing Director, Bayo Ojulari, who made this known, said the fabrication were handled by local firms.
    He noted that the maintenance shouldn’t be seen as a period of loss to the nation.
    Ojlari said the TAM had been scheduled to take off much earlier and was in the work programme of the firm, adding that the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) and Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), among others, were aware of this.
    He said TAM was important for safety, integrity and reliability of the production vessel and for maximum and sustainable output from the field.
    Ojulari said some firms were playing key roles in the TAM at Bonga as SNEPCo executes statutory activities that would ensure continuous optimum operations at the deepwater field. Nearly all the bolts and nuts as well as fabrications used for the exercise were made in Nigeria, marking a turning point in SNEPCo’ s efforts to encourage Nigerian content development, ‘’ he added.
    “This is an operation safely in Nigerian hands, with Nigerian engineers and companies playing leading roles and ensuring the objectives of the exercise are achieved,” Ojulari said.
    The TAM stared on March 4, 2017. It involves three major components – statutory and regulatory safety checks, inspections, repairs and replacement of equipment and upgrades – to ensure safety, optimum production, availability and reliability. It is also part of the base case design of the FPSO to carry out TAM on every 30 months.
    “The plan is to conclude the ramp of activities and resume production as planned in April, 2017. It is not proper to interpret the period as production loss to Nigeria. Rather, the turnaround maintenance is a series of planned and controlled activities that are implemented in collaboration with government and other stakeholders – with the aim of ensuring the continued safety and productivity of the facility. The planning started two years ago and safety is top priority in every stage of the activities,” he added.
    The turnaround maintenance is the 4th since Bonga began production in 2005. Bonga won the ‘Asset of the Year’ Award 2016 in the Shell Group. Bonga is Nigeria’s first deep water development in depths of more than 1,000 metres, and is located 120km offshore Nigeria.
    SNEPCo operates Bonga in partnership with Esso Exploration and Production Nigeria Limited, Total E&P Nigeria Limited and Nigerian Agip Exploration Limited under a Production Sharing Contract (PSC) with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

  • Reps wade into Shell’s planned relocation from Rivers

    Reps wade into Shell’s planned relocation from Rivers

    The Speaker, House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara on Thursday called for a thorough investigation into the planned relocation of the head office of  Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) from Rivers State.

    The speaker said this when he inaugurated an Ad-hoc committee mandated to investigate the planned relocation of the company.

    Represented by the Deputy Majority Whip of the House,  Pally Iriase (Edo-APC), Dogara said that improved relationship between the Federal Government and the Niger Delta region was crucial in addressing some economic challenges confronting the country.

    “This is because the Niger Delta region sits atop oil wells where much of our revenue as a nation is derived from.

    “Relocation by the SPDC is said to be based on security concerns today. This has generated outcry and agitation by the people and if we as a House do not address it, it may escalate and result to violence and insecurity,’’ Dogara said.

    The Speaker added that the onus lied on the Federal Government and the house to ensure that justice on Niger Delta region was not denied.

    He, therefore, urged the committee to come up with a report that will be fair and forestall any crisis in the Niger Delta region.

    In his welcome address, the Chairman of the Ad-hoc Committee, Rep Ishiaka Ibrahim, (Ogun-APC) said that the committee would meet with all the relevant stakeholders to address the matter.

    He said the committee would be fair to all sides.

    “We shall engage all relevant stakeholders in order to come up with report and recommendation that would stand the test of time.

    “We shall also consider all factors surrounding the conception of the decision of the SPDC’s planned relocation from Port Harcourt,’’ Ibrahim said.

    It would be recalled that the House on January 26, adopted a motion sponsored by Rep. Kingsley Chinda (Rivers-PDP), to set up an ad-hoc committee to prevail on Shell’s planned relocation from Port Harcourt.

    Chinda expressed concern that several youths were already protesting the planned relocation which will further escalate militant activities in the region.

    The youth restiveness, Chinda said, would affect the Nigerian economy that was already experiencing recession due to low crude oil output.

    The House, therefore, called on the Minister of State, Petroleum Resources, Ibe Kachikwu and the National Petroleum Investment Management Services (NPIMS) and Shell to suspend the planned relocation and allow it to intervene.

  • Shell: we’ve moved our headquarters to Niger Delta

    Shell: we’ve moved our headquarters to Niger Delta

    Shell Petroleum Development Company Limited (SPDC) has  relocated its headquarters to the Niger Delta, even before the Federal Government’s directive that oil companies should do so, the oil giant has said.

    Vice President Yemi Osinbajo gave the directive during a tour of the oil- producing region last month.

    During the tour, Osinbajo met with elders and deliberated on how to maintain peace in the region and boost crude oil production.

    Shell’s Media Relations Manager Precious Okolobo told The Nation that his company operates from the region. He said: “I can confirm that Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) is already based in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital.”

    He said the issue of whether Shell operates from the region did not arise as the multinational was committed to oil production, good corporate governance provision and compliance with environmental and regulatory laws in the country.

    He said the company concerned itself with operation in the oil and gas sector, adding that the firm’s resolve is to achieve goals that are beneficial to it and the environment where it operates.