Nigeria's senate has overwhelmingly passed a resolution demanding US$1.5 billion in compensation from Shell Petroleum Development Corporation for environmental damage caused by oilfield development in the country. The resolution was raised from a petition submitted by the Ijaw of the southern state of Bayelsa, where many multinational companies are engaged in oil development. The resolution calls for Shell to pay US$1 billion immediately and US$100 million a year for the next five years. Representatives from the company claim they did not know about it.
Critics note that all of Shell's oil development in Nigeria is operated through a company that is 55% owned by the Nigerian government, while others suggest that Nigeria's near-nonexistent environmental laws are to blame for the damage.
» BBC: Shell 'faces $1.5bn Nigeria bill'
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