Shell sells Nigerian assets to local consortium

Oil giant Royal Dutch Shell said that it was selling certain assets in Nigeria's troubled delta region to a local consortium.

Oil giant Royal Dutch Shell said on Friday that it was selling certain assets in Nigeria's troubled delta region to a local consortium.

In a statement, the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Ltd said it agreed to transfer its interest in three production licences and related equipment in the Niger Delta to a consortium led by two Nigerian companies.

- This sale of assets supports the Nigerian government’s goal of expanding opportunities for local energy companies - Mutiu Sunmonu, SPDC managing director, said in the statement.

''We have been in Nigeria for more than 50 years and remain committed to doing business here. This transaction should be seen in the context of Shell’s active portfolio management of its assets and interests across the world.''

Financial terms of the sale were not given in the statement.

The buyer was named as Seplat Petroleum Company Ltd, a Nigerian company jointly held by two Nigerian firms -- Platform Petroleum Ltd and Shebah Petroleum Development Company Ltd, along with Maurel & Prom of France.

The agreement is subject to the approval of the Federal Government of Nigeria and the national oil company, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), the statement said.

The area includes about 30 wells with a production capacity of approximately 50,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day. The wells also produce natural gas for domestic and industrial use.

Crude production is currently shut down awaiting completion of repairs to an export pipeline damaged in late 2008, it added.

The Niger delta region has been troubled for years by rebel groups demanding a greater local share of its resources, pressing their claims through attacks on installations and kidnappings of oil industry workers.

Earlier this month, Shell chief executive officer Peter Voser said the company no longer looked to Nigeria, where gunmen had just seized four Shell contract workers, to support corporate growth.

''Nigeria is still a heartland for Shell ... but we no longer depend on it for our growth aspirations. This gives us more flexibility in deciding when and how to develop oil and gas resources in Nigeria.''