Shell reports another oil spill in Niger Delta, over 130 spills in 2024

Shell Nigeria reported an oil spill from its facility in Ogale, close to Port Harcourt, following the overflow of a saver pit during flushing operations in the Niger Delta region.

This is coming less than two months after the Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) recorded a spill at one of its loading terminals in the Niger Delta region on December 18, 2024.

Another spill reportedly occurred last year at the Shell-managed Obolo-Ogale pipeline in southern Rivers State which feeds a 180,000 barrel-per-day Trans Niger line, one of two conduits to export Bonny Light crude.

SPDC has so far noted that its spill response team has swiftly contained the latest spill and notified relevant authorities.

A spokesperson for the company said the cause of the spill was unknown, but plans were underway for a regulator-led joint investigation to assess the cause and extent of the spill.

However, the Youth and Environmental Advocacy Centre (YEAC-Nigeria) said the spill occurred when an underground pit filled with crude oil began leaking into a pipeline adjacent to the Ogoni cleanup project site.

Both the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) and the Nigerian Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) are yet to confirm the spill.

Data mined from the SPDC-JV oil spills website shows that the company recorded 130 spills across its facilities and fields in the Niger Delta from January to November 2024. The website has not been updated to include data for December.

The company has faced a series of litigations from host communities and environmental advocate groups over the environmental degradation caused by oil spills from its facilities, but the company argues that illegal refineries, crude oil theft and pipeline sabotage are the major causes of oil spills.

According to the data, only 23 of the 130 spills were caused by operational failures. 107 spills were caused by sabotage and oil theft.

SPDC-JV says it hopes to achieve zero spills from its operations and tries to prevent operational spills.