Posts under ‘Oil Spill’

1 Mar 2021: Author: Channa Samkalden, Prakken d’Oliveira

Lawyers’ insights on corporate legal accountability: Channa Samkalden, Prakken d’Oliveira, Netherlands

Channa Samkalden reflects on the decision of the Hague Court of Appeals in the lawsuit against Shell in the Netherlands regarding oil pollution in Nigeria.

1.Why is this case important?

The case is important because it was one of the first cases to argue parent company liability – and (as far as I know) it became the first where a parent company duty of care for the activities of a subsidiary abroad was indeed established. Oil pollution in the Niger Delta has been an immense problem for decades – and Shell has never really been held accountable for it. A crucial first step was taken in 2015 when the Court of Appeal of The Hague confirmed the jurisdiction of the Dutch courts and opened the route to justice for the Nigerian farmers and Friends of the Earth. Five years later the court concluded that Shell Nigeria must pay compensation and that Royal Dutch Shell must see to it that a Leak Detection System is installed on the Nigerian pipeline. read more

OPINION: UK leads way in holding corporations to account for rights abuses

British court rulings reflect global movement towards greater accountability for multinational corporations

By Oliver Holland and Liberty Bridge, a partner and solicitor at Leigh Day

EXTRACTS

For Zambian farmers, Nigerian fisherman and Bangladeshi shipyard workers, recent judgments from the UK courts have provided clarity that multinational companies can be held accountable for the harm caused to individuals by their operations. Claims that are based on whether a UK company can owe a duty of care to a foreign claimant even where damage has been caused by a third party is a rapidly evolving area of law – there is a global movement towards greater accountability for multinational corporations and these recent judgments show the UK courts are leading the way. read more

Shell says Nigeria Delta oil spill dropped by 40% in 2020

By Reuters Staff: MARCH 11, 2021

LONDON (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell said on Thursday the volume of crude oil spills caused by sabotage in Nigeria’s oil-rich Delta dropped by 40% in 2020 to 1,400 tonnes.

The total number of major spills caused by theft and sabotage also dropped to 122 incidents in 2020 from 156 incidents the previous year, Shell said in its annual report.

Shell is the operator of Nigeria main onshore oil and gas joint venture SPDC which has struggled for years to contain spills in the Delta caused due to operational incidents, theft and sabotage. read more

Shell publishes Annual Report and Accounts

Royal Dutch Shell plc published its Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended December 31, 2020.

The 2020 Annual Report and Accounts can be downloaded from www.shell.com/annualreport.

In compliance with 9.6.1 of the Listing Rules, on March 11, 2021, a copy of the 2020 Annual Report and Accounts was submitted to the National Storage Mechanism. This document will shortly be available for inspection at https://data.fca.org.uk/#/nsm/nationalstoragemechanism. In compliance with section 5:25m(5) Financial Markets Supervision Act the Annual Report and Accounts was submitted to the Netherlands Authority for the Financial Markets (AFM). The AFM publishes the report in its public register. read more

Nigeria’s Lawsuits Against Shell Could Cause Oil Major Exodus

By Viktor Katona – Mar 10, 2021, 1:00 PM CST

Judging from recent headlines, Nigeria has unleashed one of the most spectacular legal attacks on one of its key oil and gas investors, to an extent previously unseen in the country’s more than 60 years of hydrocarbon production. Shell has been active in Nigeria ever since the African country opened up to international investment in the early 1960s, maintaining its position as one of the leading actors in its upstream segment, accounting for roughly 10% of Nigeria’s crude production. Seemingly, the timing is quite inopportune for a large-scale feud – projects are getting delayed and drilling contracts cancelled, Nigeria’s GDP dropped 2% in 2020 just as was bouncing off its period of economic lassitude and OPEC+ production curtailments limiting the potential output of Nigerian producers. Despite the odds, the conflict between Nigeria and Royal Dutch Shell might be a harbinger of great transformations, not necessarily to the benefit of either side. read more

Even more legal woes for Shell in Nigeria

Hi John Donovan,

Find attached a clear copy of the Petitions filed against Shell to the Nigerian Government by the Consortium of Lawyers for Human Right & Justice and African Centre for Justice & Human Right.

INFORMATION AND PETITIONS SUPPLIED FOR PUBLICATION

NEW DEVELOPMENT/BREAKING NEWS FRESH LEGAL WOES, TENSION HITS SHELL AS CIVIL SOCIETY YOUTH GROUP ASKS COURT FOR ORDER OF MANDAMUS TO COMPEL ATTORNEY GENERAL OF NIGERIA AND EFCC TO INVESTIGATE AND PROSECUTE SHELL FOR STOLEN 16 MILLION BARRELS OF CRUDE OIL read more

Parent company owes duty of care in transnational cases – Hague Court of Appea

1 March 2021 by Rosalind English

The Hague Court of Appeal has recently handed down a ruling that is of profound importance to environmental lawyers. It is not only the first case at the appellate level in Europe that has resulted in a victory on the merits for the victims, but also the first case to hold that a parent company was under a duty of care with regard to foreign claimants. I will attempt to summarise one of the judgments in the following paragraphs, but readers would do well to look at the detailed analysis of the case by  Dr Lucas Roorda on the Rights as Usual blog: “Wading through the (polluted) mud: the Hague Court of Appeals rules on Shell in Nigeria”. read more

By John Donovan

The BBC recently published an article under the headline: Shell’s legal woes over Nigeria’s oil.

The article listed some of the growing numbers of lawsuits being brought against Shell in multiple legal jurisdictions, all arising from Shell’s deplorable conduct in Nigeria.

The damaging global news coverage reporting on the various court actions seems to have stung Shell’s CEO Ben van Beurden into threatening that Shell may pack its corporate bags and pull out of Nigeria. read more

Shell’s Nigerian accounts frozen in oil deal dispute

Nigerian court freezes Shell accounts ahead of Aiteo lawsuit

The lawsuit is latest in a string of legal headaches for the biggest international oil company operating in Nigeria, Africa’s biggest oil exporter.

LAGOS (Reuters) – A federal court in Lagos has issued an injunction barring Royal Dutch Shell’s Nigerian subsidiaries from withdrawing money at 20 local banks until it ringfences potential damages in a lawsuit brought against the oil major by Aiteo Eastern E&P.

Aiteo is seeking about $4 billion in total over alleged problems with the Nembe Creek Trunk Line (NCTL) pipeline it bought from the Anglo-Dutch group in 2015 and over claims Shell undercounted its oil exports. read more

Shell’s past sins in Nigeria catching up with the oil giant at last

The recent UK Supreme Court judgement represents a major defeat for Shell after decades of evading legal retribution for its evil plunder and pollution in Nigeria.  

The crusading solicitors Leigh Day (London) – the scourge of errant corporations, brought the action against Shell on behalf of Nigerian communities impacted over many years by Shell’s horrific environmental legacy in Nigeria. 

My help was sought by Leigh Day in bringing the action after Leigh Day discovered “invaluable” information on my website royaldutchshellplc.com.  read more

Landmark court ruling could ‘end impunity’ for Shell and other multinationals

Okpabi and others v Royal Dutch Shell Plc (41 pages)

A major court defeat for oil and gas giant Shell could herald the end of “a long chapter of impunity” for multinationals implicated in human rights abuses overseas, lawyers and campaigners have said.

The UK Supreme Court ruled on Friday that the Ogale and Bille communities in the Niger Delta can bring legal claims for clean-up and compensation against Royal Dutch Shell plc (RDS) and its Nigerian subsidiary, the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC). read more

Shell Files Arbitration Against Nigeria Over Spill Dispute

William Clowes: Feb 13 2021, 7:57 PM Feb 13 2021, 10:38 PM

(Bloomberg) — Royal Dutch Shell Plc launched arbitration proceedings against the Nigerian government over a long-running community dispute.

The oil major’s Netherlands-registered holding company and a Nigerian unit filed a case at the World Bank’s International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes on Feb. 10, according to the Washington-based organization’s website. Shell brought its claim against Africa’s biggest crude producer under the bilateral investment treaty between the governments of the Netherlands and Nigeria, it said. read more

Nigerians win UK court OK to sue Shell over oil spills

By Julia Payne, Kirstin Ridley: 4 MIN READ: FEBRUARY 12, 2021: 11:56 AM

LONDON (Reuters) – The UK Supreme Court on Friday allowed 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.

Senior judges said there was an arguable case that UK-domiciled Shell, one of the world’s biggest energy companies, is responsible, in the latest test of whether multinationals can be held to account for the acts of overseas subsidiaries. read more

Royal Dutch Shell can be sued by Nigerian communities, UK Supreme Court rules

Oliver Haill

12:25 Fri 12 Feb 2021

Two communities from the Niger Delta have brought the case because they say numerous oil spills over many years have contaminated their land and waterways

The Supreme Court in London has today ruled that a group of thousands of farmers and fishermen in Nigeria can sue Royal Dutch Shell (LON:RDSB) in English courts over years of contamination from oil spills in the Niger Delta.

Judges said the FTSE 100-listed oil supermajor has a common law duty of care for the activities of its Nigerian arm. read more

Shell’s legal woes over Nigeria’s oil

Environmental cases: