PENGASSAN Rejects Planned Sale Of Shell’s Onshore Assets

PENGASSAN Rejects Planned Sale Of Shell’s Onshore Assets

The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) has rejected the planned sale of Shell’s onshore assets, claiming the group being speculated to buy up the assets is unknown to it.

On January 16, Shell said it would sell its Nigerian subsidiary, Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC), for a consideration of $1.3 billion, with buyers making an additional payment of up to $1.1 billion relating to prior receivables at completion.

A week later, PENGASSAN issued a statement, saying the purported group is an assemblage of unknown entities with no proven track record of managing such diverse assets.

“We reject without equivocation all the terms affecting employees that were communicated in the presentation to our members,” the statement signed by the association’s Secretary, Comrade Lumumba Okugbawa, and President, Comrade Festus Osifo, read.

“One of the companies that made up the assemblage has a history of subjugating workers and subjecting them to untold hardship as exemplified in the current management of OML 34.

“The group is unknown to us and thus it’s an assemblage of unknown entities with no proven track record in managing such diverse assets.

“Our Shell/SNBO Branch of PENGASSAN has further communicated all subsequent information presented to our members by Shell Management on the planned sale.”