Shell confirms fresh oil spill in Rivers community

Shell Petroleum Development Company has confirmed fresh oil spill at Ebubu, in the Eleme Local Government Area of Rivers State.

The spokesman for Shell, Michael Adande, made the confirmation in a statement issued in Port Harcourt on Saturday night.

Adande said the incident occurred at the company's Ebubu and Oghale Manifold 12 pipeline in the state.

The statement partly read, “The Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited confirms an incident on the Ebubu and Oghale Manifold 12 pipeline in Rivers State.

“We are working with industry regulators to safely contain the discharge which is on our right of way while we await the government-led joint investigation team into the cause and impact.”

Meanwhile, the  Executive Director, Youths and Environmental Advocacy Centre, Fineface Dumnamene, in a statement, has called on industry stakeholders to investigate the incident in order to ascertain the real cause of the spill.

The group reiterated its call on Shell and its joint venture partners to replace the obsolete Trans-Niger Delta pipeline in the Ogoni area, which are “overaged and now bursting and deflating like balloons and destroying the environment.

The statement read, “YEAC-Nigeria also called on the Federal Government and the joint venture partners to launch an independent investigation into the incessant oil spills in the Bodo community.

“YEAC-Nigeria calls on the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency to immediately facilitate a joint investigation visit to the new spill site, determine the cause of the spill, ensure that adequate compensation is paid to the affected community and its people if found to have been caused by equipment failure, as suspected.

“Then clamp the spill point and clean up the polluted water and area immediately.”

Efforts to reach a spokesman for Shell in Port Harcourt proved abortive, as his mobile telephone was not reachable as of the time of filing this report.