Royal Dutch Shell has appeared in court at the Hague, accused of causing pollution in the Niger Delta and ruining the livelihoods of local farmers and fishermen.
The case – brought by four Nigerian citizens, alongside Friends of the Earth – is a turning point in the legal arena, as it is the first time a Dutch company has been sued in the Netherlands for the activities of a foreign subsidiary. In this situation, Shell is being accused on behalf of its subsidiary which does business in Africa. The plaintiffs hope that the case will provide a new route for offended parties to make claims against large multinational companies causing damage in rural areas.
Shell (and other oil producers) stand accused of causing wide-spread pollution in the Niger delta through spillages from their oil pumping facilities and pipelines which cross the region – the Niger delta considered to be one of the world’s foremost wetlands, and home to a diverse range of coastal marine ecosystems.
The majority of the region’s 31 million inhabitants depend on nature for their livelihoods, with farming and fishing being the main sources of income. It is alleged that through multiple oil spillages and other related pollution, the region has become contaminated, causing illness and preventing the land from being developed.
Mr Eric Dooh, one of the Nigerian plaintiffs, explained to Reuters at court: “My community is a ghost land as a result of the devastation. We had good vegetation. Today people have respiratory problems and are getting sick…Shell is aware of the whole devastation. I want them to pay compensation, to clean up the pollution so we can grow our crops and fish again.”
The claims relate in particular to three oil spills that happened in the region in 2004, 2005 and 2007. However, Shell claims that the spills occur due to damage caused by oil thieves who try to tap into the pipelines transporting oil in order to siphon oil away; but often these illegal attempts go wrong resulting in spillages. Shell further contends that when such attempts result in pollution, the company participates in securing a proper clean-up of the affected areas.
Just last month, Shell was subjected to an illegal attempt from oil thieves, who tried to steal oil from the company’s major Bomu-Bonny Trunkline. However, the attempt went wrong, causing fires in the pipeline and oil spillages before the company managed to switch the pipe off. A tanker was seen on fire, billowing flames and smoke nearby.
However, the plaintiff’s lawyer refuted Shell’s claims, and told the court that: “It was insufficient maintenance, not sabotage, that was responsible for the leaks … Shell did not operate as a conscientious oil company.”
The court is due to hand down judgment early next year.
Nigeria is Africa’s largest oil producer, with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) reporting that the country’s output rose to 2.12 million barrels per day in the second quarter of 2012. Many large foreign oil producers have been drawn to the West African country in their rush to invest in Africa.
However, emerging forecasts project that Nigeria may be set to lose as much as 5.2 trillion naira ($33 billion) in revenue as a result of oil finds in neighbouring West-African countries which hitherto exported reserves from Nigeria. Business Day reports that while Cameroon, Equatorial Guinea, Ghana and the Ivory Coast combined used to import 604.45 billion naira ($3.85 billion) worth of oil, Nigeria may be about to experience a drop in custom given the countries now play host to their own oil reserves.
The US also imports an average of 4.56 trillion naira ($ 29 billion) worth of oil from Nigeria each year, but given trends that show the US’ own oil exports rising, Nigeria may find that the US needs to do less business in Africa in terms of oil importation.
Source: VenturesAfrica
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