Activists urge Nigeria to delay Shell’s $2.4 billion sale of assets in deeply polluted Niger Delta

By TAIWO ADEBAYO
Associated Press

ABUJA, Nigeria (AP) — Local activists and international environmental groups want Nigeria’s government to delay approving the $2.4 billion sale of oil company Shell’s onshore assets. They claim the London-based Shell is trying to shirk its environmental and social responsibilities in the highly polluted Niger Delta. The company is trying to sell its subsidiary Shell Petroleum Development Company — which operates its onshore assets in the delta — to Renaissance Africa Energy Company, a consortium of local companies. Activists say Shell has a history of poor divestment in the region. Shell says it assesses the environmental performance records of companies it sells assets to.