"Shell Appeals $2 Billion Judgment in Nigeria Pollution Case", 20 Jan 2022

[Shell] is challenging a November 2020 judgment in favor of community members claiming a leak from a company pipeline damaged their land and waterways. A federal court of appeal in the city of Owerri is scheduled to consider applications from both sides on Jan. 25, according to a lawyer for the plaintiffs.

Farmers from the Ejalawa community in the southern Rivers state sued Shell and its joint venture partner, the state-owned Nigerian National Petroleum Co., in January 2020. A federal judge accepted that an abandoned flow line operated by Shell began spilling a “large volume of crude oil” in September 2019 that damaged the surrounding environment.

The court said the 88 plaintiffs were entitled to 800 billion naira ($1.92 billion) in compensation, and it ordered Shell to clean up...

Shell and the NNPC deny that spills occurred on the alleged dates and say the claim against them is “unsubstantiated, vague and exaggerated,” according to the ruling. They also argued unsuccessfully that the judge shouldn’t award damages because several required steps, such as a joint investigation of the alleged leak and an assessment of its volume, weren’t carried out.
... A spokeswoman for Shell confirmed the appeal, without providing additional information.

...Shell will apply for a stay of execution on Jan. 25, seeking to delay any payments until the appeal is decided, while the Ejalawa inhabitants will ask the judge to order the company to deposit 800 billion naira into a court account, the plaintiffs’ lawyer, Mohammed Ndarani Mohammed, said in an interview.