Business

UK S’Court Okays Suit against Shell over Oil Spills

Published

5 years ago

February 13, 2021

The ruling of the United Kingdom Supreme Court yesterday paved the way for a group of 42,500 Nigerian farmers and fishermen to sue Royal Dutch Shell (RDS) in English courts after years of oil spills in the Niger Delta contaminated land and groundwater.

In a major decision that is bound to have far reaching implications for multinationals operations in their host countries, Senior judges said UK-domiciled Shell, one of the world’s biggest energy companies, did have a common law duty of care, in the latest case to test whether multinationals can be held to account for the acts of overseas subsidiaries.

The ruling comes almost two years after a seminal ruling by the Supreme Court in a case involving mining company, Vedanta. The judgment allowed nearly 2,000 Zambian villagers to sue Vedanta in England for alleged pollution in Africa.

That move was seen as a victory for rural communities seeking to hold parent companies accountable for environmental disasters. Vedanta ultimately settled out of court in January.

Nigeria’s Ogale and Bille communities of Rivers State allege their lives and health had suffered because repeated oil spills had contaminated the land, swamps, groundwater and waterways and that there had been no adequate cleaning or remediation.

Represented by law firm Leigh Day, they argued that Shell owed them a duty of care because it either had significant control of, and was responsible for, its subsidiary SPDC. Shell countered that the court had no jurisdiction to try the claims.

“(The ruling) also represents a watershed moment in the accountability of multinational companies. Increasingly impoverished communities are seeking to hold powerful corporate actors to account and this judgment will significantly increase their ability to do so,” Daniel Leader, partner at Leigh Day, said.

SPDC is the operator of oil pipelines in a joint venture between the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation which holds a 55 per cent stake, Shell which holds 30 per cent, France’s Total with 10 per cent, Italy’s Eni with 5 per cent.

A Shell spokesman said the decision was disappointing.

“Regardless of the cause of a spill, SPDC cleans up and remediates. It also works hard to prevent these sabotage spills, by using technology, increasing surveillance and by promoting alternative livelihoods for those who might damage pipes and equipment,” Shell said.

Shell has blamed sabotage for oil spills. It said in its annual report published last March that SPDC, which produces around 1 million barrels of oil per day, saw crude oil spills caused by theft or pipeline sabotage surge by 41 per cent in 2019.

Shell CEO Ben van Beurden said last week that the firm would take “another hard look at its onshore oil operations” in the West African country.

The ruling is the second judgement against Shell this year regarding claims against its Nigerian operations. In a landmark Dutch ruling two weeks ago, an appeals court held Shell responsible for multiple oil pipeline leaks in the Niger Delta and ordered it to pay unspecified damages to farmers, in a victory for environmentalists.

Leigh Day said that the amount of compensation sought would be quantified as the case enters the trial stage.

In 2015, Shell agreed to pay out 55 million pounds ($83.4 million) to the Bodo community in Nigeria in compensation for two oil spills, which was the largest ever out-of-court settlement relating to Nigerian oil spills.

Business

Naira Strengthens to ₦1,359.31/$ as CBN Data Shows Further Gain in Official Market

Published

8 hours ago

April 10, 2026

Trends Admin

Naira Strengthens to ₦1,359.31/$ as CBN Data Shows Further Gain in Official Market

The Naira continued its positive performance on Thursday, appreciating further in the official foreign exchange market to close at ₦1,359.31 per US dollar, according to data published by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

The latest figure represents an improvement of ₦12.50 compared to the previous trading day, reflecting a 0.9 percent gain from Wednesday’s closing rate of ₦1,371.82/$.

The appreciation highlights continued stability in the official foreign exchange window, where recent policy measures have helped improve liquidity and reduce pressure on the local currency.

Market analysts attribute the naira’s relative strength to ongoing foreign exchange reforms by the CBN, increased dollar supply in official channels, and tighter regulation aimed at narrowing the gap between official and parallel market rates.

Naira Strengthens to ₦1,359.31/$ as CBN Data Shows Further Gain in Official Market

Business

Nigeria May Face ₦2,000 Petrol Price Without Intervention, TUC Warns FG

Published

8 hours ago

April 10, 2026

Trends Admin

President of the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) Festus Osifo

TUC Warns Petrol May Hit ₦2,000/Litre, Proposes Crude Revenue Subsidy Plan to FG

DETAILS:

The Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) has warned that petrol prices in Nigeria could rise to as high as ₦2,000 per litre if urgent economic measures are not introduced to stabilise the country’s energy and currency markets.

TUC President, Festus Osifo, issued the warning during a press briefing in Abuja, citing the combined impact of rising global crude oil prices and continued depreciation of the naira as major drivers of worsening fuel costs.

Osifo said Nigerian workers are already under severe economic pressure, noting that in some parts of the country, fuel pump prices are already approaching the ₦2,000 threshold due to market volatility and transportation differentials.

He explained that the 2026 national budget benchmarked crude oil at about $64.85 per barrel, while current international prices hover around $100 per barrel, creating what he described as significant “excess revenue” for the government.

The TUC is proposing that the Federal Government allocate about 60% of this excess crude revenue to support local production by subsidising crude supply to domestic refineries, including the Dangote Refinery and other modular refineries.

According to Osifo, this approach would be more transparent and harder to manipulate than the previous fuel subsidy regime, while also helping to reduce the cost of petrol, diesel, and aviation fuel within a short period.

Nigeria May Face ₦2,000 Petrol Price Without Intervention, TUC Warns FG

Business

Dangote Sugar Warns Staff Over Chewing Sugarcane, Threatens Arrest

Published

9 hours ago

April 10, 2026

Trends Admin

Dangote Sugar Warns Staff Over Chewing Sugarcane, Threatens Arrest

Dangote Sugar Refinery Plc has issued a stern and final warning to employees at its Numan operations in Numan, banning the chewing of company sugarcane within its premises and threatening severe disciplinary actions, including arrest and prosecution, for defaulters.

The directive, contained in an internal memo dated April 7, 2026, and signed by the Head of Human Resources, Ikechukwu Okorie, categorised the act as “gross misconduct”. The company stressed that any staff caught engaging in the practice risks summary disciplinary measures, which may extend to legal consequences.

According to the memo, the sugarcane cultivated and processed at the facility is a valuable company asset, and unauthorised consumption amounts to misuse of resources. Management noted that beyond the economic implications, the habit of chewing cane and discarding chaff indiscriminately undermines hygiene and sanitation standards required in a food processing environment.

The circular further emphasised that maintaining strict housekeeping is critical to operations at the Numan plant, warning that littering the premises with cane residue violates established workplace standards. As part of enforcement, security personnel have been placed on high alert and directed to apprehend any employee found violating the directive, with offenders facing both internal disciplinary action and possible prosecution aimed at recovering losses.