The Federal Government, Wednesday, revoked the operating licence granted Shell Petroleum Development Company, SPDC, for Oil Mining Lease 11, in Ogoni land and directed the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and its upstream subsidiary, the Nigerian Petroleum Development Company, NPDC to take over the operatorship of the controversial Oil Mining Lease (OML) 11.
Copy of the letter.
This was according to a letter sighted by The DEFENDER dated, March 1, 2019, with Reference Number: SH/COS/A/8540, signed by Chief of Staff to President Muhammadu Buhari, Mallam Abba Kyari.
The letter titled “Operatorship of Entire Oil Mining Lease (OML) 11” was addressed to the Group Managing Director (GMD), NNPC, Dr. Maikanti Baru, with the President’s directing the “NNPC/NPDC to take over the operatorship from Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) of the entire OML 11 not later than April 30th 2019 and ensure smooth re-entry given the delicate situation in Ogoniland.”
A media report has it that OML 11 lies in the southeastern Niger Delta and contains 33 oil and gas fields of which eight are producing as per 2017. In terms of production, it is one of the most important blocks in Nigeria. The terrain is a swamp to the south with numerous rivers and creeks.
