President Bola Tinubu has moved to resolve outstanding issues around the OPL 245 oil block that has been in dispute for years, effectively handing the block back to Shell and Eni, and ending yearslong corruption probe into the case.
The government says resolving the case will put the oil block that had been idle for decades to use.
But the decision has raised concerns of possible shady negotiations to benefit government officials and their cronies, especially coming months after Eni transferred its onshore asset to Oando, run by President Tinubu’s nephew, Wale Tinubu. The state oil company initially criticised the deal.
Pluboard has yet to confirm the full details of the new deal to resolve the Malabu question.
The minister of state for petroleum, Heineken Lokpobiri, denied the deal will personally benefit President Bola Tinubu. He however confirmed the president had directed the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, and other agencies to resolve the case.
“We are transparent about this process. We have full government in resolving this matter. Everything is being done transparently,” he told reporters, according to the News Agency of Nigeria.
“This process has nothing to benefit the president as an individual, his interest is the welfare of Nigerians and to attract investments to the sector for Nigerians to benefit from God-given natural resources.”
Shell and Eni did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
The minister said the government has held talks with Shell and Eni on the matter, and it was agreed at the last meeting that parties should go on with negotiations and reconvene within one month to see how they could sort out all the issues.
Malabu Scandal
The case involved the controversial sale of oil block OPL 245, one of Nigeria’s richest. Awarded to Malabu, a company co-owned by former oil minister Dan Etete under questionable circumstances, it was later sold to oil giants Shell and Eni for $1.1 billion.
The payment by the firms for an oil field that essentially belonged to the state, considering the circumstances of its award, was supervised by the federal government, and part of the proceeds went as bribes to government officials through a complex financial scheme.
While investigations and trials took place in multiple countries, no definitive conclusions were reached, however, leaving lingering questions about corruption and lost revenue for Nigeria.
The federal government in November withdrew a $1.1 billion civil claim against Shell and Eni related to allegations of corruption in the deal, ending all litigation around the oil asset.
An Italian court in 2021 acquitted Shell, Eni, the operator of the block, and company executives of corruption allegations in the acquisition of the field a decade earlier.
Mr Lokpobiri restated the government’s position that there was no criminal liability on its part, or by the other parties, in the oil block deal.
“For 28 years, there has been no investment there. Nobody has benefited from the block,” he said. “The president in his wisdom directed that we should resolve the problems around OPL 245.”
Other ministers
Mr Lokpobiri said President Tinubu’s directive also went to the anti-graft EFCC, which should be independent; the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) and Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd).
“The previous administration initiated most of the cases that we are talking about today, and they took us to court, while we took Eni, Malabu, others to different courts in Europe, Canada, etc, but we didn’t win any of the cases.
“To even shock you, there is one that got us a penalty of over 70 million pounds,” he said.
“So we have been fined over 70 million pounds by the court. Who will pay that? You and I will pay that, or our children will pay, because it is a judgement debt.
“And in all the ones that we pursue both in Switzerland and other locations, we have no evidence to get conviction.
“And so it makes sense for this government to come and say that for 28 years, this block has been idle.
“This block is a prolific block that will add so much value to our economy, so let’s see how we can resolve the problem,” he said.
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