Economy
Fishermen Beg Buhari Over Unpaid $3.6bn Oil Spill Fines
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Artisan Fishermen Association of Nigeria (ARFAN) has called on President Muhammadu Buhari to intervene in compensation owed its members for the 2011 Bonga oil spill incident.
The association wants the President to compel Shell Nigeria Exploration and Exploration Company (SNEPCo) to pay the compensation fine imposed on it by the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) for the spill which occurred more than 10 years ago.
The group recalled that the Bonga offshore oil field, operated by SNEPCo, discharged 40,000 barrels of crude oil into the Niger Delta coastline of the Atlantic Ocean in 2011, forcing fishermen in the region to abandon the area.
At its 2022 Review and Agenda Setting meeting in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, ARFAN decried the delay in getting justice on the impact of the 2011 Bonga spill from SNEPCo facility, lamenting that the incident had crippled the business of thousands of fishermen in the region.
The coordinator of the group, Mr Samuel Ayadi, who read the communique of the meeting urged President Buhari to prevail on SNEPCo to comply with the verdict of the regulators and courts to rekindle the hope of the fishermen and the society.
The communique signed by representatives of the group from the impacted states of Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Delta, Ondo and Rivers, urged the Federal Government to give a listening ear to the plight of the impacted people.
Mr Ayadi noted that following the order by the National Oil Spills Detection and Response Agency to fishermen to pull out of fishing to avoid catching contaminated fish, the oil firm refused to show empathy or indemnify their loss.
“This hardship which has led to the untimely death of many of the members of the Association is as a result of the attitude of Shell towards the victims.
“That Shell never empathised with the victims even during the height of the spill impacts.
“Even when it had been determined through a Post Impact Assessment that the spill was as a result of operational failures and an estimated 40,000 barrels of crude oil had been pumped into the waters, operational fields of the fishermen/women.
“That the present Federal Government led by President Muhammadu Buhari has given the Artisan Fishermen Association of Nigeria victims of the Shell Bonga Oil Spill the most listening ears.
“That the struggles for justice and faith in a peaceful and lawful resolution of the issues of the spill coupled with the fatherly disposition of Mr President provided the opportunity for NOSDRA to pronounce fines and awards against Shell to the tune of $3.6 billion.
“That the Parliamentary approval of the fines/awards and the litigations and their outcomes are considered SNEPCO for the benefit of the victims of the spill and all other impacted stakeholders.
“ARFAN is still hopeful that Mr President in his reputed commitment to justice, sympathy for the downtrodden, voiceless and needy, shall disentangle all impediments and cause the implementation of our plea for immediate restitution/compensation,”.
For context, NOSDRA had imposed a fine on SNEPCO for discharging 40,000 barrels of crude into the Atlantic Ocean on December 20, 2011.
The fine comprised $1.8billion as compensation for the damages done to natural resources and consequential loss of income by the affected shoreline communities as well as punitive damage of $1.8billion totalling $3.6 billion.
However, SNEPCo instituted a legal action against NOSDRA challenging the imposition of the $3.6 billion fine on them at the Federal High Court in Lagos, of which the judge, Justice Mojisola Olatoregun on June 20, 2018, dismissed the suit against Shell.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The NASD Over-the-Counter (OTC) Securities Exchange faced south on Tuesday, March 10, by 0.64 per cent, with the market capitalisation dropping N16.25 billion to close at N2.540 trillion versus the preceding session’s N2.556 trillion, and the NASD Unlisted Security Index (NSI) shrinking by 27.15 points to 4,245.97 points from 4,273.12 points.
The red team had more members than the green team yesterday, with the former comprising four and the latter three.
Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc depreciated by N2.43 to sell at N80.00 per share versus N83.78 per share, Afriland Properties Plc lost N1.90 to trade at N17.60 per unit versus N19.50 per unit, Geo-Fluids Plc declined by 30 Kobo to N3.00 per share from N3.30 per share, and Acorn Petroleum Plc declined by 2 Kobo to N1.33 per unit from N1.35 per unit.
Conversely, FrieslandCampina Wamco Nigeria Plc appreciated by N2.85 to N136.70 per share from N133.85 per share, Lagos Building Investment Company (LBIC) Plc added 25 Kobo to sell at N4.00 per unit compared with Monday’s price of N3.75 per unit, and First Trust Mortgage Bank Plc gained 1 Kobo to settle at N1.91 per share versus N1.90 per share.
The volume of securities surged during the session by 1,253.2 per cent to 14.9 million units from 1.1 million units, the value of securities jumped 180.7 per cent to N132.7 million from N47.3 million, and the number of deals increased by 61.1 per cent to 58 deals from 36 deals.
The most active stock by value (year-to-date) was CSCS Plc with 38.1 million units exchanged for N2.4 billion, Okitipupa Plc occupied the second spot with 6.3 million units worth N1.1 billion, and the third place was taken by MRS Oil Plc with 3.4 million units valued at N507.8 million.
The most traded stock by volume (year-to-date) was Resourcery Plc with 1.05 billion units sold for N408.7 million, followed by Geo-Fluids Plc with 130.6 million units transacted for N503.8 million, and CSCS Plc with 38.1 million units worth N2.4 billion.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Naira further weakened against the United States Dollar in the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEX) on Tuesday, March 10.
Yesterday, the local currency depreciated against the greenback by N8.14 or 0.58 per cent to sell at N1,401.40/$1 compared with the previous day’s N1,393.26/$1.
In the same vein, the domestic currency tumbled against the Pound Sterling in the official market by N22.67 to trade at N1,885.73/£1 versus Monday’s closing price of N1,863.06/£1, and lost N19.37 against the Euro to settle at N1,631.51/€1, in contrast to the preceding day’s N1,612.14/€1.
Similarly, the Naira crashed against the US Dollar in the black market during the trading day by N5 to close at N1,420/$1 compared with the previous day’s N1,415/$1, but gained N3 at the GTBank forex counter to end at N1,416/$1 versus N1,419/$1.
With the latest level, the Naira hit a two-month low despite improvements in externalities that could offer enough backing for the local currency, including a stabilisation of oil prices to levels that could strengthen the current account balance and improve FX liquidity.
The last time the exchange rate hit the N1,400/$1 region was January 27, when the local currency traded at N1,401.2 against the American currency.
Inflows into the FX market have strengthened in recent weeks, but likewise, the US Dollar has strengthened at the international market due to recent upheaval involving the United States, Israel and Iran.
Meanwhile, in the cryptocurrency market, the price of the top 1o coins rallied as easing fears of an oil supply shock, helped by the move toward a possible release of emergency reserves, lifted risk sentiment across global markets.
The gainers were led by Dogecoin (DOGE) which chalked up 1.7 per cent to trade at $0.0926, Cardano (ADA) jumped 0.5 per cent to $0.2599, TRON (TRX) added 0.3 per cent to sell at $0.2867, Bitcoin (BTC) appreciated by 0.2 per cent to $69,619.49, and Ripple (XRP) grew by 0.1 per cent to $1.38.
On the flip side, Ethereum (ETH) crashed by 0.3 per cent to $2,022.42, Solana (SOL) slid 0.2 per cent to $86.57, and Binance Coin (BNB) lost 0.1 per cent to finish at $640.29, while the US Dollar Tether (USDT) and the US Dollar Coin (USDC) traded flat at $1.00 apiece.
By Dipo Olowookere
The bears took control of Customs Street on Tuesday after equity investors embarked on profit-taking, resulting in the market closing lower by 0.57 per cent.
Sell-offs were witnessed in almost all the key sectors of the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) Limited yesterday, as the only riser was the insurance index, which gained 0.04 per cent.
The industrial goods space shrank by 0.71 per cent, the banking counter depreciated by 0.48 per cent, the energy counter fell by 0.29 per cent, and the consumer goods sector also slipped by 0.29 per cent.
Consequently, the All-Share Index (ASI) moderated by 1,130.86 points to 196,066.11 points from 197,196.97 points, and the market capitalisation contracted by N726 billion to N125.858 trillion from N126.584 trillion.
Mutual Benefits lost 10.00 per cent to trade at N4.59, NASCON also gave up 10.00 per cent to sell for N147.60, Red Star Express dropped 9.94 per cent to N28.55, Austin Laz slumped 9.88 per cent to N3.74, and SCOA Nigeria depreciated by 9.85 per cent to N27.90.
On the flip side, Premier Paints gained 9.97 per cent to close at N17.65, Sunu Assurances appreciated by 9.95 per cent to N4.75, Conoil improved by 9.95 per cent to N204.40, DAAR Communications expanded by 9.84 per cent to N2.01, and Eterna grew by 9.56 per cent to N51.00.
Business Post observed that there was a stronger selling pressure yesterday after a fall in the global crude oil market. The bourse ended with 26 price gainers and 44 price losers, reflecting a negative market breadth index and weak investor sentiment.
A total of 746.9 million equities valued at N27.9 billion exchanged hands in 65,275 deals during the session versus the 762.5 million equities worth N31.2 billion traded in 86,488 deals in the preceding day, showing a decline in the trading volume, value and number of deals by 2.05 per cent, 10.58 per cent, and 24.53 per cent, respectively.
Leading the activity chart for the session was Access Holdings with 80.3 million shares valued at N2.0 billion, Mutual Benefits sold 52.7 million stocks worth N254.7 million, Fortis Global Insurance transacted 41.4 million equities for N57.7 million, Zenith Bank traded 35.4 million shares worth N3.3 billion, and Jaiz Bank exchanged 31.5 million stocks valued at N343.4 million.
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