Nine Years After Acquiring Controversial Oil License, Eni Yet To Commence Exploration

Eni S.P.A. has said that it has invested hundreds of millions of Euro on the controversial Oil Prospecting Licence 245 without drilling a barrel of oil in over nine years.

The company said  in a statement seen by THE WHISTLER, that  the licence issued to it by the Federal Government is due to expire in 2021.

The OPL245 was acquired by Shell and Eni in 2011, during the administration of former Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan.

The Oil Prospecting Licence 245 covers a  deep-water offshore area over 1000 miles Below Sea Level, approximately 150km off the Niger Delta.

The two oil giants involved in the scandal, Shell and Eni had in May won a proceeding in England in a $1bn lawsuit brought by Nigeria.

Eni said it, “Trusts that the truth will soon be established, not least because the prospecting licence for Block 245 expires in 2021 and the Nigerian Federal Government has not yet converted its prospecting licence into an oil mining lease . Not a single oil barrel has been drilled to date.”

Eni noted that activities on the Block 245 required significant investments amounting to several hundred million euros  and will require further investments worth billions over a number of years to come before having any chance to proceed with full-scale oil production activities.

According to the statement, the oil giant said the OPL 245 does not grant the right to exploit any acreage, but provides an opportunity to explore the area.

The acquisition of OPL 245 Block by Shell and Eni has been a controversial subject as the transparency of both companies have been contested over the years.

Based on the arrangement of the sale of the controversial oil block in offshore Nigerian waters, the Federal Government stood as a negotiator.

The two oil giants paid about $1.1bn to Nigerian government accounts in the UK.

Part of the amount was subsequently transferred to Malabu, a company partly owned by the country’s former Minister for Petroleum, Dan Etete.

The then petroleum minister allegedly further transferred over $500m to accounts belonging to Abubakar Aiyu.

The government alleged that most of the $1.1 bn was used for bribes and kickbacks to government officials.

The Nigerian government has an ongoing trial involving Shell, Eni and 13 other defendants in Italy.

Eni in the statement  said it now awaits the Court’s verdict on completion of the Public Prosecutor’s closing arguments, the plaintiffs’ statements, and the closing statements of the defence.