George Monbiot discusses Nigeria gas flaring and related topics with CEO of Shell
Environmentalist George Monbiot recently interviewed Jeroen van de Veer, CEO of Shell, on ethics, greenwash advertising, renewable energy investments and gas-flaring in Nigeria.
Natural gas is a by-product of oil extraction, but Nigeria doesn’t have the pipeline infrastructure to sell natural gas, so the crude oil is extracted and sold, while the gas is flared. Many oil workers are kidnapped every year in the Niger Delta, so safety is obviously one of the problems facing development of pipelines. However, it would have been interesting had Mr. Monbiot asked the CEO to explain the problems more clearly. Why does gas continues to flare across the Delta in 2008, and what are Shell’s plans for future development in the region?
Nigeria produces over 2 million barrels of oil per day (United States is a major importer). That’s 100 million dollars of oil every day (selling at $50 per barrel), yet Nigeria ranks as one of the most corrupt countries in the world. 70 percent of the country’s population lives on $1 a day or less, and life expectancy is 47 years.
According to this NY Times article, oil companies typically keep 7 percent of the profits from oil sales, and the government gets 93 percent. So what does the Nigerian government do with the oil field royalties and leasing fees collected from developers like Shell? Are there any plans to build pipelines to pump the gas to areas where it can be used for efficient cooking and electric power production?
It would have been interesting too had Mr. Monbiot asked the CEO what kind of role Shell plays in dealing with the corrupt government of Nigeria and whether Shell sees itself as a sustainable business in the region.
The oil industry has a legacy of environmental destruction in the Delta region, causing unrest amongst fishermen and communities. But Nigeria still has a lot of oil to sell (and presumably a lot of natural gas as well to either flare, or distribute to African communities in need, via gas pipeline or electric power grid). There are 36 billion barrels of proved oil reserves in Nigeria. Compare that to 22 billion barrels in the U.S., 80 billion barrels in Venezuela, 12 billion barrels in Mexico, or 179 billion barrels in Canada.
More on Nigeria’s oil industry:
NY Times: Growing Unrest Posing a Threat to Nigerian Oil
NPR: Gas Flaring Disrupts Life in Oil-Producing Niger Delta
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