Shell ignored warnings of spill clean-up ‘scam’, whistle-blower tells BBC

An investigation in the BBC revealed allegations that the paralysis of the energy giant had ignored frequent warnings that the controversial cleaning process of the areas caught by oil in southern Nigeria was suffering from problems and corruption.

The headquarters of the multinational in London, along with the Nigerian government, has repeatedly stated that working to clean the Oililand Oil sites, which started about eight years ago, is going well.

But the BBC discovered evidence that they had been warned again and again over several years that the plan, which was established by the government and funded various oil companies worth one billion dollars (805 million pounds), suffers from a series of issues.

One of the close observers described the cleaning project as “deception” and a “fraud” that wastes money and left the people of Ugonolland in the Niger Delta region to live with the devastating effect of oil pollution – after 13 years, the pioneering United Nations report raised the risk of their situation.

“The operating environment in the Niger Delta remains difficult due to the huge scope of illegal activities such as oil theft,” Shell told the BBC.

“When the spills occur from our companions, we clean and process, regardless of the reason. If it is a operating leak, we also compensate people and societies.”

These allegations are expected to start in a civil trial on Thursday in the Supreme Court in London, where lawyers who represent two Ugunillands from about 50,000 people will say that Shell must bear the responsibility for oil pollution that occurred between 1989 and 2020, claiming that its infrastructure is for it .

Societies say the spills may have left them without clean water, unable to farm and fish, and create serious risks to public health.

Shell, who was paying to sell its origins in the West African country to focus on drilling abroad and wild gas, indicated that she would defend the claims.

He denies committing any violations and says that the spills in the region were caused by destruction, theft and the illegal refining that the company says is irresponsible.

BBC visited the affected areas in the Niger Delta, where Shell, the largest private oil and gas company in the country, has discovered the presence of crude oil 68 years ago.

The United Nations says at least 13 million barrels – or 1.5 million tons – has been leaked since 1958 in at least 7,000 accidents in the Niger Delta.

The spills have left many families to worry about their health and ways to live.

Grace Audi, 37, lives with her two -year -old partner in Ughali, where there have been at least 40 oil spills from the infrastructure of failure, according to Li Day, the United Kingdom company that represents societies in this issue.

Her family and neighbors can only reach a polluted well, forcing them to buy clean water for use for drinking, cooking and washing, and once a day, at a cost of 4,500 Nigerian Naira ($ 3, 2.40 pounds) – in one of the area where the average wage is Daily less than $ 8.

It is a familiar story for many in Ugonelland.

Paulina Agbikbi BBC told the lush green spaces once surrounded by its exciting participation in its community in Budo – not one of those who go to the court on Thursday. She said that rivers and ponds were used in all kinds of animals and fish, especially the ostrich.

“The place was more green, not only the mangrove trees, but all next to the coastal line-there were Bubu trees, palm trees and more. But during the spills, the destruction was contaminated everywhere.”

Her family has survived generations of hunting, until a devastating leak 10 years ago.

“Most children – from drinking water – have been ill. Many have died. I lost eight children. My husband is sick.

“Since our livelihoods have been taken away, people in Budo are hungry and suffer.”

In 2011, the United Nations Environmental Program (UNEP) published a major study on the impact of pollution on the oil -rich area.

She found that members of one community in Ocunland were drinking water contaminated with cancer known at levels of more than 900 times above the WHO’s guideline (WHO). The same chemical, gasoline, was discovered in all air samples.

It was also found that the sites that the Nigerian Shell Company, the Chlis Petroleum Petroleum Development Company in Nigeria (SPDC), are still contaminated, and the technologies they used did not reach regulatory requirements.

The report concluded that the comprehensive cleaning of the region It will take 25-30 years – This led to the formation of the hydrocarbon pollution project.

This was initially created by the Nigerian government in 2012, but no cleaning was cleaned – until it was re -launched by a new government in December 2016.

Hyprep was partially funded by oil companies including the Nigerian -owned Petroleum Company (NNPC) and Shell, which gave $ 350 million.

However, the BBC has witnessed internal documents indicating representatives of Shell and the Nigerian government that were warned several times of the alleged fraudulent practices of the agency.

A person who realizes the project to BBC spoke about their fears – and asked not to disclose his identity of fear of revenge.

“It is a common knowledge that what we really do is a fraud. Most of them are the deception of the Ugonian people,” said The Whistle-Blower.

“It is continuous so that more money can be placed in the bowl and ends in the pockets of politicians and other people in power.”

The allegations related to the failures of Hyprep include:

• Contracts that are granted to companies that have no relevant experience
• Laboratory results are forged – sometimes signs of soil and polluted water as clean
• Project costs are amplified
• External auditors are sometimes banned from checking cleaning on the sites properly.

In the lectures of one meeting in 2023, representatives from the Nigerian company, The Eep and Hyprep, were noted, it was noted that the contractors were “non -efficient” were “participating again” and that “they should not be allowed to increase the deterioration of the environment.”

In a separate report leaked by the BBC of the same year, it was noted that the laboratory results “were reported regularly with deviations.”

In 2022, the United Nations wrote to the Nigerian Ministry of Environment, warning that if nothing changes, the “very bad criteria” will continue to clean.

The BBC asked Hiebrip and the Nigerian government to comment on the allegations, but it did not receive any response.

But our investigation revealed evidence that Shell was familiar with problems.

In a meeting with the British High Commissioner of Nigeria in January last year, his minutes were obtained under the Freedom of Information Law, representatives of Shell approved the “institutional challenges” of the cleaning agency and the opportunity to reject the “future financing” towards it.

“Hyprep is an agency established by the federal government in Nigeria, where the Governing Council is largely formed by senior ministers and government officials, along with five representatives of societies, NGOs and a representative of one shell,” Shell told the BBC.

This is not the only treatment project in Ogoniland that has been missed.

In 2015, Shell agreed to a settlement of 55 million pounds for cleaning after catastrophic spills in 2008 of its infrastructure in the Bodo region.

The company said that the cleaning, which was conducted by the Bodo Broker initiative (BMI), which aims to work as a mediator between oil companies, including Shell, and the Bodo community (is partially funded by the oil giant and Nigerian organizers) that were adopted as 98 % complete.

However, the BBC visited sites inside the area and found raw oil beating from the soil and sympathy with the water.

Shell and BMI insists that any cases of oil spills in the region due to theft – known in this industry as “oil”.

“There is a plan to restore contractors to clean these areas to the specifications, to the standard,” BONFAL, Director of the BMI told BBC.

“It is the responsibility of all stakeholders, shell, yes, care for their facilities, to ensure that the return of oils does not come from their facilities.

“But for the cleaning areas. I think some responsibility is also for society to ensure that some illegal activities also do not also reinstallation.”

Shell said that it requires active measures to prevent oil spills resulting from oil.

The company said: “We take wide steps to prevent this activity and the spills it causes, including air monitoring, removing illegal ties on pipelines, and building steel cages to protect the well heads,” the company said.

The alleged failures in cleaning oil come at a time when Shell is preparing for its Nigerian sale, SPDC, to Renaissance Africa, a union for local and international companies.

Some local population in Ugonelland accused the “oil giant” of “escape” from cleaning the land and water properly.

They are also afraid that Shell may still benefit from the region by trading oil extracted from the region in the future.

Joe Snap, the lawyer, told the BBC: “Any oil operator controls the relevant pipelines will have a tremendous impact on their daily lives,” Joe Snap, a lawyer for a day, told the BBC.

“There are few details that these deals will lead to.

“It is not clear how renaissance [Africa] He will act to go ahead. At least with Shell, we have a way to hold them. “

Metal products, such as oil and gas oil, represent 90 % of Nigeria exports, most of which come from the Niger Delta.

The local residents, whose main source of livelihood was agriculture and fishing, told the BBC that since the discovery of oil, or what some refer to as “Black Gold”, their house was pumped for profit – by major oil companies, by oil thieves. And corrupt politicians.

They say they have not seen any benefit, just suffering – such as Ogwi patience that blames the last oil spills for their failed crops.

“In the past if I was harvesting, I can eat some with my family and even sell some … but over the past few years, I couldn’t get anything. It’s really bad,” the 42 -year -old BBC.