Share

Shell offers $51m to settle oil spills case

London - Royal Dutch Shell is ready to pay up to £30m ($51m) in compensation for two oil spills in Nigeria in 2008 after a London court rejected a larger claim, sources involved in the case said on Friday.

Around 11 000 residents of the Bodo community in the Niger Delta represented by law firm Leigh Day appealed in 2011 to a London court for more than £300 in compensation for the spilling of 500 000 barrels of oil.

The London High Court on Friday rejected the claimants' attempts to expand the scope of the compensation, ruling that the pipeline operator could not be held responsible for damage caused by oil theft.

Shell's offer from September 2013 to settle the case for £30m remained on the table, sources involved in the case said.

A trial is planned to start in May 2015 in Nigeria, but Shell urged the claimants to reach a settlement beforehand.

"From the outset, we've accepted responsibility for the two deeply regrettable operational spills in Bodo," Mutiu Sunmonu, Managing Director of the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Ltd (SPDC), said in a statement.

"We hope the community will now direct their UK legal representatives to stop wasting even more time pursuing enormously exaggerated claims and consider sensible and fair compensation offers," Sunmonu said.

Massive oil theft, sabotage of infrastructure and leaks from ageing pipelines are cutting into the profits of oil majors operating in Nigeria, as well as damaging the public finances of the African economy.

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Rand - Dollar
19.04
-0.7%
Rand - Pound
24.02
-0.5%
Rand - Euro
20.53
-0.3%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.36
-0.1%
Rand - Yen
0.13
-0.7%
Platinum
900.15
+0.4%
Palladium
1,000.00
-0.2%
Gold
2,212.54
+0.8%
Silver
24.59
-0.2%
Brent Crude
86.09
-0.2%
Top 40
68,094
+0.6%
All Share
74,290
+0.5%
Resource 10
56,964
+2.3%
Industrial 25
103,585
+0.3%
Financial 15
16,463
-0.4%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Company Snapshot
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE
Government tenders

Find public sector tender opportunities in South Africa here.

Government tenders
This portal provides access to information on all tenders made by all public sector organisations in all spheres of government.
Browse tenders