The Supreme Court however disagreed and declared the leak was a “one-off event or an isolated escape”, in a judgement which does not affect a separate legal action against Shell over other spillages.
“There was no continuing nuisance in this case because outside the claimant’s land, there was no repeated activity by the defendants or an ongoing state of affairs for which the defendants were responsible that was causing continuing undue interference with the use and enjoyment of the claimants’ land,” the court noted.
The London-listed energy major welcomed the judgement on Wednesday, but said the spill was “regrettable”. “Today’s decision… rejected the claimants’ case that Bonga oil could have become trapped and re-mobilised years later, migrating upstream and impacting the claimants’ communities. While the 2011 Bonga spill was highly regrettable, it was swiftly contained and cleaned up offshore, the spokesperson added.Nigeria, Africa’s biggest crude producer, has struggled with oil spills for decades.