Amnesty International Nigeria Director Reacts to Fast-Track Sales Approvals Process for Oil Companies in Nigeria

Amnesty International Nigeria Director Raises Concerns Over Fast-Track Sales Approvals for Oil Companies in Nigeria

In response to the news that Nigeria’s oil industry regulator is considering offering a fast-track sales approvals process for oil companies looking to sell their businesses in the country, Isa Sanusi, Amnesty International Nigeria Director, has raised concerns about the potential implications for human rights and environmental protection.

Sanusi emphasized the need for accountability, particularly in light of Shell’s current efforts to seek regulatory approval for the sale of its business in the Niger Delta. He highlighted the decades of grievous human rights abuses related to oil spills in the region, which have had devastating effects on the environment, drinking water, agricultural land, fisheries, and local communities.

The Amnesty International Nigeria Director warned against allowing Shell to simply “cut and run” from the consequences of its operations in the Niger Delta, urging that any fast-track approvals process must not enable the company to evade responsibility for past harms or expose communities to further human rights violations.

Expressing concerns about the potential imbalance of power in negotiations around sales approvals and the exclusion of affected local communities from decision-making processes, Sanusi stressed the importance of ensuring that buyers have the necessary expertise and financial stability to manage acquired operations safely and effectively.

Amnesty International continues to advocate for a thorough sales approval process that includes safeguards to protect human rights, such as environmental assessments, asset inventories, and provisions for decommissioning oil infrastructure. Sanusi emphasized the need to prevent Shell’s sale from exacerbating the fossil fuel industry’s history of pollution and called for a swift transition to renewable energy sources.

The background to these concerns lies in Shell’s recent announcement of the sale of the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC) to the Renaissance consortium for up to US$2.4 billion. The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission has proposed the fast-track approvals option, raising questions about the potential impact on human rights and environmental protection in Nigeria’s oil industry.