FG refuses renewing Shell’s OML 11 for security reasons

By Andrew Orolua, Abuja

The federal government on Thursday asked the Federal High Court in Abuja, to refuse the prayer of Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) seeking to compel it to grant or renew its Oil Mining Lease (OML) 11 because of national security challenges.

It said that as a responsible government, its primary objective is to guaranty the safety of lives and properties and that it has refused to renew OML 11 as a pre-emptive measure to prevent the occurrence or escalation of security breach in the Ogoni area.

This is contained in the federal government’s reaction to the suit filed by the Shell Petroleum Development Company before the vacation judge, Justice Taiwo Taiwo.

SDPC in its suit is seeking to compel the minister of petroleum resources to renew OML 11, in addition to 14 other oil mining leases approved for it on June 30, 2019.

The federal government said that OML 11 covers an area of 3, 095.25 square kilometres that stretches between Rivers and Imo states with 14 oilfields, 10 out of which is located in Ogoni area of Rivers state.

It said that besides the security challenges, the SPDC is trying to compel the government to commit an illegality because an approval by the minister of state for petroleum of a single oil block the size of 3, 095.25 is tantamount to facilitating illegality in contravention of the (Drilling and Production) Regulation which limits the size of an oil mining lease block to 1.295 square kilometres (500 miles).

The federal government therefore, urged the judge to hold that the SPDC suit is destitute of merit and suffers incurable legal deficiency and should be dismissed.

When the matter came up on Thursday, counsel to the federal government, Mohammed Diri told the court that he has not seen the further affidavit and reply which the SPDC counsel, Funke Adekoya (SAN) told the court was served on the respondents last Friday.

The matter has been adjourned and it continues today.