Internal Shell documents disclosed in a UK court case have exposed evidence of ageing pipelines, missing oil wells and an estimated $10.9 billion decommissioning liability, raising fresh questions over decades of pollution in Nigeria’s Niger Delta
Internal Shell documents disclosed in a United Kingdom court case have exposed what rights groups describe as years of neglected infrastructure, weak environmental oversight and attempts to minimise the cost of pollution in Nigeria’s oil-producing Niger Delta, raising fresh questions over the company’s environmental record before its exit from the country’s onshore oil business.
The findings are contained in a new report, Nigeria: Lifting the Lid, published recently by Amnesty International and seven environmental and human rights organisations.
The report analyses confidential Shell emails, technical audits, presentations and internal reviews disclosed during ongoing legal proceedings in the UK.
It alleges that Shell knew of serious integrity failures in its pipelines and oil wells, exempted its Nigerian subsidiary from some internal safety standards, and delayed decommissioning ageing facilities despite acknowledging the environmental risks.
The revelations come barely a year after Shell completed the sale of its former onshore subsidiary, Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), to Renaissance Africa Energy, a transaction that drew widespread concerns from environmental campaigners over responsibility for decades of oil pollution across the Niger Delta.
The report also follows years of litigation brought by affected Nigerian communities against Shell in European courts over pollution connected to its operations.
Pipeline described as ‘a basket’
Among the most striking disclosures is an internal email describing the old Nembe Creek Trunk Line as “a basket” because of its deteriorating condition.
AASG MAGAZINE had reported that the 96.5-kilometre Nembe Creek Trunk Line runs near the riverine Bille community—a cluster of 45 islands—connecting inland oilfields to export terminals.
This newspaper reported that the pipeline was among the company’s largest oil transport infrastructure assets in Nigeria, with the capacity to transport about 150,000 barrels of crude daily. However, it repeatedly suffered leaks, vandalism and crude oil theft.
