Shell To Nigerians: We Can’t Solve World Hunger, We Paid $31bn To FG

Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) has said it remitted about $31 billion naira to the Federal Government between 2002 and 2016.

$29.8 billion was paid to the federation account and $1.2 billion to Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Igo Weli, the company’s General Manager, External Relations, said on Monday.

Speaking to journalist in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, Weli was reacting to the shut down of SPDC flow station and gas plant in Belema community by angry youth in the state.

The community is accusing the company of neglect and pollution.

Contrary to the expectations of the people, the GM said the company does not have the resources to “to solve world hunger”, saying it is not the government.

Weli further frowned at the shutdown of the SPDC flow station, saying it sends a wrong signal to the international community.

He also said the company had set aside three percent of its annual budget to NDDC as its contribution to the development of the Niger Delta.

“People are having high expectations from SPDC; they forget the company is not the government and do not have the resources to solve world hunger,” he said.

“SPDC has made several efforts to sensitise the people on how our business is run so that their expectations can be realistic and align with realities of how we run our business.

“The business we do add value in several ways through contributions to the federation account and the NDDC.

“Between 2012 and 2016, SPDC JV contributed $29.8 billion to the federation account which flows down to the state governments, local governments and to the communities.

“If the youths isolate our corporate social responsibility and put all the burden of infrastructure needs on SPDC, then the expectation would not balance.

“In 2016 alone, our contribution to NDDC was 106.8 million dollars; people need to define their expectation; ask themselves if their expectation is realistic and if SPDC is the government.

“People should express their grievances in a way that follows due process to avoid sending the wrong signal to potential investors about how businesses are treated in our society.”