Obinna Nwaoku, Port Harcourt
The host communities of Oil Mining Lease (OML)-25 in Kula Kingdom, Akuku-Toru Local Government Area of Rivers State, have demanded a binding agreement with the new operator of the oil facility, Renaissance Africa Energy Holdings, before oil production can resume in the area.
This development comes on the heels of Shell’s divestment of the oil asset to Renaissance Africa Energy Holdings, regardless of a protracted dispute with the host communities over issues of neglect, impoverishment, and enslavement since it began operations in the area 67 years ago.
The host communities, comprising Kula, Belema, Offoin-Ama, and Ngeje, made the demand at a stakeholders’ engagement meeting with the new operator in Port Harcourt.
The communities insist that the new operator must inherit the liabilities of Shell before they will be allowed to operate in the area.
They are seeking a robust company-host community relationship that prioritizes sustainable development, mutual benefit, transparency, and long-term community empowerment through initiatives like infrastructure development, education, healthcare, and economic opportunities, while also ensuring environmental stewardship.
The host communities have requested a separate engagement with the new operator to extract an obligatory and enforceable commitment from the company.
An elder statesman and prominent Stakeholder of Kula Kingdom, Anabs Sara-Igbe said part of the liabilities are non-implementation of the 2019 Agreement between Shell, the host communities, the Federal Government, NNPC, and Belemaoil.
He lamented that the Host Communities suffered untold hardship, total neglect, deprivation, enslavement, and the worst form of human backwardness for 67 years of the operation of Shell in the area.
Chief Sara-Igbe said the new operator of OML-25 should also be ready to inherit the massive unemployment in the area as well lack of basic amenities and pollution of the environment by Shell.
He said: “They did not inform us, we had a meeting that another company has taken over the facilities. It is not only OML 25, they also took over other facilities.
“We have not seen any significant improvement from Shell. We have told Renaissance our experience with Shell and Shell has so many liabilities with us and several issues that have not been solved.
“We will not cooperate until those liabilities are done. They have agreed to discuss further with the government, although they did not categorically say if whether to carry out the liabilities or not but we assured them if they will carry out those liabilities we will definitely work with them.”
On his part, the President of the National Youth Council of Nigeria, Amb. Sukubo Sara-Igbe Sukubo, who is also a prominent Stakeholder of Kula Kingdom expressed deep concern over the decision of the new operator to retain the Staff of Shell who were complicit in the dispute with the Host Communities, saying it may perpetuate a circle of conflict and undermine the trust of the Host Communities.
He said the new operator must address the age-long menace of Youth unemployment in the Host Communities by prioritizing employment and economic empowerment in its policies and programs to guarantee sustainable oil production in the area.
OML-25, a major oil block in the Niger Delta which accounts for over 45,000 barrels of crude oil and 103,000 cubic feet of gas per day, has been lying fallow for over 15 years due to a longstanding dispute between the former Operator, SPDC, and its Host Communities.
