The history of Nigeria, the discovery of oil in commercial quantities, the oil boom of the 1970s, and Niger Delta’s environmental degradation and hostilities can never be told without the mention of Shell. After this history, Shell announced yesterday it was selling its Nigerian onshore assets for US $2.5 billion. Any follower of the oil and gas industry will not be surprised by the announcement as Shell has been actively trying to sell the assets in the last few years. After this sale, Shell involvement in Nigeria is now limited to the less problematic offshore assets. Shell assets include OML 18, OML 29, and the Nembe Creek pipeline. Shell had become frustrated with the onshore assets on the back of oil theft and incessant pipeline vandalisation that has crippled investments in the industry and led from a peak of 2.5 million bpd production in November 2005 to a struggling 1.5 million bpd today. The sale process is still subjected to Nigeria’s government authorisation.
