Oil spill: Shell Petroleum Company agrees to pay Ogoni people N45.9 billion claim

The International Oil giant, Shell Petroleum Company Limited has succumbed to Court judgement, thus agreeing to pay the sum of N45.9 billion to Ogoni people in the Nigerians Delta region.

The amount is compensation payment for oil spills that have degraded their environment over the years of oil exploration activities.

The oil giant on Wednesday at the Federal High Court in Abuja agreed to pay a whopping sum of N45.9B to the people for the loses suffered during oil spillage that ravaged their communities.

The Federal High Court had ten years ago ordered the payment as compensation.

Now that the coast is clear for payment of the money, it would be paid through their legal counsel, Chief Lucius Nwosu.

Shell Petroleum Company through its lawyer, Chief A. O Ejelamo, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria announced the decision to pay up the money while addressing Justice Ahmed Ramat Mohammed of the Federal High Court Abuja on Wednesday.

The senior lawyer sought order of Justice Mohammed to permit payment of the debt through the Chief Registrar of the court in a bank account to be opened for the purpose.

Final decision to pay up the money was endorsed by Justice Ahmed Ramat Mohammed of the Federal High court Abuja.

Although the oil company had sought to pay through the Chief Registrar of the court, it was eventually agreed that the amount be paid to the aggrieved people through their lawyer.

The amount was awarded in favour of Ogoni people by Justice Ibrahim Buba of the Lagos division of the Federal High court on June 14, 2010 in his judgment in a suit filed by the Ogoni people.

There was an earlier reconciliatory effort that made the Phone people to waive the interest leaving the principal amount.