Oil spill: London court hears Bodo community suit against Renaissance,
A London High Court will today, continue hearing in the oil spill suit brought by Bodo community in Gokana Local Government Area of Rivers State against Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited, RAEC, which acquired the assets of Shell Petroleum Development Company, SPDC.
Bodo community had sued over the damage caused by the 2008 oil spills which impacted a large area of land belonging to their community in the Niger Delta.
Amnesty International Nigeria’s Director, Isa Sanusi, in a statement, yesterday, said: “Almost two decades since oil spills by Shell’s then-Nigerian subsidiary SPDC devastated huge swathes of mangrove habitat, the Bodo community whose lives and livelihoods were and continue to be affected by the pollution, have a final chance for justice.
“Despite Shell admitting responsibility for the pollution over a decade ago. This case aims to prove that their promised clean-up is far from complete and contamination continues to pose a serious health risk to tens of thousands of people.
“It is shameful that it has taken so long and required legal action to get the companies responsible for this environmental destruction to face their responsibilities.
“We hope that this long-overdue trial will provide the affected Bodo communities the justice and remediation they have fought for and deserve. This is a historic moment that should serve as a reminder that a just transition to clean energy also means holding polluters to account for the harm they have caused in the past.”
Recall that in 2008, there were two massive oil spills, caused by poorly maintained Shell pipelines, in a creek close to the Bodo community. Crude oil continuously leaked into the water for five weeks on each occasion.
Shell settled with the community in 2014 but has yet to clean up Bodo’s devastated waterways despite a mediation process that started in 2015.
The/ Court of Appeal heard the Shell Nigeria oil spill appeal/ on October 8, 2024. On October 11, 2024, the/ Court of Appeal ruled in favour of Nigerian communities over alleged pollution by oil giant Shell. On December 6, 2024, a/ full trial of Nigerian communities’ claims against Shell/ was given the go ahead.
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A London High Court will today, continue hearing in the oil spill suit brought by Bodo community in Gokana Local Government Area of Rivers State against Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited, RAEC, which acquired the assets of Shell Petroleum Development Company, SPDC. Bodo community had sued over the damage caused by the 2008 oil spills […]
The post Oil spill: London court hears Bodo community suit against Renaissance appeared first on Vanguard News.
, , Idowu Bankole, {authorlink},, , Vanguard News, May 8, 2025, 1:45 am
