‘It is premature’ — Shell dismisses alleged takeover of Kidney Island asset by Rivers

Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) has dismissed a purported takeover of its Kidney Island asset by Rivers state government.

This was disclosed in a statement signed by Gbenga Odugbesan, spokesman for SPDC.

Earlier on Wednesday, Kelvin Ebiri, special assistant to the governor of Rivers state on media, said the Island used by Shell as their operational base in Port Harcourt now belongs to the state government following a certificate of purchase registered in Port Harcourt’s lands registry.

Ebiri had said the facility and Shell’s 30 percent stake in Oil Mining Lease (OML) 11 were “lawfully purchased through public auction ordered by the High Court of Rivers state”.

However, the statement read: “SPDC has dismissed the purported takeover of Kidney Island asset of the SPDC joint venture (JV) in Port Harcourt by the Rivers state government in the exercise of rights purportedly acquired through a court auction process that is still the subject of ongoing appeals at the Court of Appeal sitting in Port Harcourt.

“Any purported exercise of rights allegedly acquired through that process including any attempt to take over or seal up the Kidney Island asset or other assets of the SPDC JV to satisfy claims in pending suits is premature and prejudicial to the ongoing court proceedings, and therefore not recognised”.

According to the statement, any acquisition or assignment of interests in a oil licence or lease requires the minister of petroleum approval, adding that it has not been granted to Rivers state to acquire any of its assets.

“In addition, the ruling of the Supreme Court on November 27, 2020 did not decide liability or the size of the award in the underlying suit of Chief Agbara & Others Vs SPDC neither did the ruling affirm the purported sale of SPDC JV’s assets to the River state government as being claimed by the state.”

In accordance to this, the Federal High Court issued an order restraining any further enforcement of the underlying Agbara judgment at least until the hearing scheduled on January 14, 2021.

Shell, therefore, called on Rivers state government to stay clear off its Kidney Island asset and “allow due process of the law.”