REUTERS

Court rejects Nigeria’s compensation request against Eni, Shell

By Alfredo Faieta and Francesca Landini: November 11, 2022

MILAN, Nov 11 (Reuters) – An appeals court in Milan on Friday rejected Nigeria’s $1.092 billion compensation request against Italian energy group Eni SpA (ENI.MI) and Shell Plc (SHEL.L) in civil proceedings relating to a $1.3 billion oilfield deal.

The decision was read out in court.

In July prosecutors had dropped related criminal proceedings, clearing Eni and Shell, as well as managers including Eni Chief Executive Claudio Descalzi, in one of the oil industry’s biggest alleged corruption cases. read more

REUTERS

JPMorgan wins London oil trial in which Nigeria sought $1.7 bln

By Sinead Cruise and Estelle Shirbon: June 14, 2022

LONDON, June 14 (Reuters) – JPMorgan Chase (JPM.N) has won a London High Court battle against Nigeria, which was seeking $1.7 billion in damages over the U.S. bank’s role in a disputed 2011 oilfield deal.

JPMorgan said the judgment reflected its commitment to acting with high professional standards everywhere it operates, while Nigeria said it was disappointed and would review the judgment carefully before considering its next steps. read more

The Telegraph

JP Morgan accused of negligence over corrupt $1.3bn Nigerian oil deal

By Mark Hollingsworth: 20 February 2022 

The case revolves around $876m of missing money from an oil field sale in 2011

JP Morgan negligently allowed corrupt Nigerian officials to siphon off more than three quarters of a $1.3bn oil investment to a former oil minister’s company and assorted middlemen, the High Court will hear this week.

The world’s largest bank is being sued by the Nigerian state for allegedly allowing corrupt former state officials to extract $875m between 2011 and 2013 from a government account opened with JP Morgan in London. read more

Royal Dutch Shell: How Nigeria’s Ex-Attorney General Bayo Ojo Received $10 Million From Malabu Largesse

10/05/2021 | 03:07am EDT

Christopher Bayo Ojo, who between June 2005 and May 2007 was Nigeria’s Attorney General and Minister of Justice, received $10.026 million the infamous Malabu OPL 245 share-outs, a payment investigators said was a “bribe” for his earlier controversial decision to reassign the lucrative oil block to Dan Etete, Nigeria’s former petroleum minister. read more

‘Activist’ Billionaire hedge fund manager Daniel Loeb buys $500m stake in Royal Dutch Shell and demand it splits in two to focus on renewable energy

• Billionaire hedge fund manager Daniel Loeb, head of Third Point LLC, has acquired $500million in shares of Royal Dutch Shell PLC 
• In a letter obtained by The Wall Street Journal the firm has demanded that the oil major to separate into two separate entities 
• One would include Shell’s legacy businesses and provide steady cash flow while the other would house renewables and other units needing more investment 
• Third Point’s suggestions come after Exxon shareholders elected a third director nominated by activist hedge fund Engine No 1 to the energy company’s board
• Alexander Karsner, a senior Google strategist, joins environmental scientist Kaisa Hietala and former Andeavor CEO Gregory Goff on the 12-person board 

By SHANNON THALER FOR DAILYMAIL.COM

PUBLISHED: 04:46, 28 October 2021 | UPDATED: 06:22, 28 October 2021

A billionaire hedge fund manager has acquired a large stake in Royal Dutch Shell PLC and is demanding that the oil major to separate into two separate companies.

Daniel Loeb’s Third Point LLC is pushing for the separation to attract new investors and hold on to current ones as many have sold their shares over concerns that Shell is not environmentally friendly.

According to The Wall Street Journal the activist hedge fund’s stake in Shell is worth more than $500million and is one of Shell’s largest investors. read more

Royal Dutch Shell: How Nigeria’s Ex-Attorney General Bayo Ojo Received $10 Million From Malabu Largesse

Extracts from an article published by Premium Times on 5 October 2021

Christopher Bayo Ojo, who between June 2005 and May 2007 was Nigeria’s Attorney General and Minister of Justice, received $10.026 million from the infamous Malabu OPL 245 share-outs, a payment investigators said was a “bribe” for his earlier controversial decision to reassign the lucrative oil block to Dan Etete, Nigeria’s former petroleum minister. read more

REVEALED: How Embattled Ex-Attorney General, Adoke Sought To Transfer Over $1billion From Nigerian Government Account After Leaving Office

BY SAHARA REPORTERS,

NEW YORK SEP 28, 2021

An internal email exchange between anti-money laundering officers at JP Morgan Chase (JPMC) bank records that a former Nigerian Attorney-General of the Federation, Mohammed Adoke sought to transfer over $1 billion from government account, after he had left office.

 The information showed that “Mr Adoke”, described in the email as “the former Nigerian Minister of Justice and Attorney General”, sought to transfer $1,092,015,000 from a Federal Government of Nigeria (FGN) account, held with the London branch of JPMC, even though he was not a Minister at the time, an Italian newspaper, IRPIMEDIA reports. read more

REUTERS

Analysis: Benchmark of Big Oil on methane emissions shows ‘significant gap’ between reality and reporting

By Terry Slavin – Editor, Reuters Professional: AUGUST 14, 2021 

Geofinancial Analytics’s MethaneScan® benchmark scores the oil and gas producers based on observed methane emissions in the year to this July.

This first snapshot, of the top 15 producers, finds that oil super-majors Royal Dutch Shell and Chevron are the worst performers, followed by ConocoPhillips, Marathon Oil and ExxonMobil. read more

REUTERS

Acquittal of Eni and Shell in Nigeria case faces legal challenge

MILAN, July 29 (Reuters) – Italian prosecutors and the Nigerian government have appealed the acquittal of Eni (ENI.MI) and Shell (RDSa.L), as well as a series of past and present managers, in a Nigerian corruption case, according to a document seen by Reuters.

Image from Amnesty International UK

IMAGE SOURCE: Slick PR can’t disguise Shell’s devastating oil pollution in Nigeria

ARTICLE FROM THE NEW YORK TIMES

The Fisherwomen, Chevron and the Leaking Pipe

By Ruth Maclean July 25, 2021, 3:00 a.m. ET

Oil companies like Chevron, Shell and Eni have made billions in profits in the vast Niger Delta region in the last decades. But now some are pulling out — and they are leaving utter ruin in their wake, according to government monitors and environmental and human rights organizations. The delicate ecosystem of the Niger Delta, once teeming with plant and animal life, is today one of the most polluted places on the planet. read more

REUTERS

Italian court acquits two in Nigeria oil graft case

BY REUTERS STAFF: JUNE 24, 2021

MILAN (Reuters) – An Italian appeals court on Thursday overturned jail sentences handed down to Nigerian Emeka Obi and Italian Gianluca Di Nardo for their part in a graft case involving Eni and Shell in Nigeria.

In a decision taken behind closed doors but read out to reporters afterwards, the three judges quashed the convictions and said there was no case to answer.

The prosecution itself had asked for the sentences to be overturned after a court in March acquitted the two energy groups in a long-running case revolving around the acquisition of a Nigerian oilfield for about $1.3 billion. read more

REUTERS

Italy orders inquiry into Eni-Shell Nigeria corruption prosecutors

June 15, 20212:26 PM BST

MILAN, June 15 (Reuters) – Italy’s justice ministry ordered an inquiry on Tuesday into the conduct of two prosecutors in a corruption case involving energy groups Eni (ENI.MI) and Shell (RDSa.L) in Nigeria.

Milan’s top prosecutor said last week that he backed the two men, after a trial lasting more than three years.

Reporting by Emilio Parodi; Writing by Stephen Jewkes; Editing by Crispian Balmer and Alexander Smith read more

PREMIUM Times

Nigeria: Malabu Scandal – OPL 245 Licence Expires

By Oladeinde Olawoyin: 26 MAY 2021

The expiry of the licence returns control of the oil field to the Nigerian government.

The licence for the controversial Nigerian offshore OPL 245 oil block has expired, PREMIUM TIMES has learnt.

According to civil society campaigners Global Witness, Eni confirmed the development in response to questions at their 2021 annual general meeting.

The organisation added on Wednesday that the expiry of the licence returns control of the oil field to the Nigerian government. read more

Judge calls for more JP Morgan disclosure in OPL 245 case

JP Morgan must provide more documents to Nigeria, as the two sides duke it out over payments in connection to the OPL 245 scandal.

Justice Calver handed down a judgement this morning, following a hearing that took place on May 5.

Nigeria welcomed the ruling. A representative said JP Morgan had been required “to disclose documents from 5 further senior executives and compliance officers at the bank who were involved in signing off on US$875 million of fraudulent payments in connection with the OPL 245 scandal and in US compliance investigations carried out shortly before the bank decided to pay out anyway”.

The bank should give a “clear and unambiguous account of exactly how the decisions to make these huge payments were made when it was on notice that to pay out risked its customer, Nigeria, being defrauded,” the representative continued.

“Justice will be sought for the people of Nigeria, who will be pleased the trial will begin early next year.”

Calver’s ruling set out a number of searches JP Morgan must carry out. Among those named to comply with the order are Pamela Johnson, Lester Pataki and John Gibbons, high-ranking executives at the bank. read more

JPMorgan Memo Warned $875 Million Nigeria Payment Was Graft Risk

By Jonathan Browning: 7 May 2021, 08:00 BST Updated on 7 May 2021, 08:29 BST

European and Nigerian courts have been raking over the purchase by Eni SpA and Royal Dutch Shell Plc of the oil license in Africa’s largest crude producer a decade ago. While the energy giants were recently acquitted of corruption charges in Milan in a decision prosecutors could appeal, Nigeria’s government is continuing to seek compensation from JPMorgan. read more

Shell treads ‘narrow path’ as scrutiny of Big Oil’s climate targets intensifies

Author Yannic Rack: 22 April 2021

Oil and gas majors are under growing scrutiny to deliver on their climate pledges, with some investors and industry analysts still unconvinced that their transition can both deliver shareholder value and make a meaningful dent in reducing the pollution caused by their products.

Royal Dutch Shell PLC presented a strengthened climate plan to its shareholders in February, acknowledging for the first time that it will need to eliminate or offset all of its emissions — including those generated when its fuels are burned, which make up the bulk — to reach its 2050 net-zero goal. read more