NIGERIA:OIL GIANT TO RETURN LAND
Oct 15th, 2008 by admin
A Nigerian high court has ordered the oil giant, Shell, to return land housing an oil and gas terminal to its original owners. Shell Nigeria agreed to rent the land on which it built Nigeria’s largest oil export terminal in 1958 from the residents of Bonny in Rivers state. But the customary land owners took Shell to court after accusing the company of obtaining a certificate of occupancy from the state government in 1998 without their consent. The presiding judge said the oil company’s action smacked of greed, was unlawful, and that the land still belonged to the people of Bonny.