Mkpoikana Udoma
Port Harcourt — Two separate crude oil spills have rocked two Ogoni communities in Rivers State, namely Ogale community in Eleme Local Government Area, and Korokoro community in Tai Local Government Area, sparking fears of worsening environmental degradation in the already polluted Niger Delta region.
While the cause of the spills remains unclear, the oil spill in Korokoro is from a wellhead close to an HYPREP remediation site, within the controversial OML11 formerly operated by Shell Nigeria and now taken over by NNPC Ltd.
Similarly, the spill oozing out from a pipeline in Ogale is closed to a manifold operated by Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited, a facility which recorded massive spill incident in early February 2025.
Confirming the incident, the Port Harcourt Zonal Director of the National Oil Spills Detection and Response Agency, NOSDRA, Mr Augustine Bello, said the agency was following up on the incidents.
Bello, however, disclosed that a Joint Investigation Visit, JIV, will be conducted after the Easter holidays.
JIV is a statutory inquiry that follows every oil spill incident consisting of representatives of the oil firm, regulators, host community and State Ministry of Environment.
He said, “We’re following up on the spills, the one in Korokoro belongs to NNPC Ltd and they have already initiated containment today. JIV will be done after the festivities.
“For Ogale, we’re waiting for feedback. Before the close of today I should have a proper update on it. Probably because of the festivities it will take up to Tuesday or Wednesday for a JIV to hold.”
Reacting, Dr. Fyneface Dumnamene Fyneface, Executive Director of the Youths and Environmental Advocacy Centre, YEAC-Nigeria, noted that while the volume of oil spilled, and the exact cause remain unclear, early reports from local volunteers point to equipment failure.
The environmental justice advocate warned that failure to address new and recurring spills could undermine ongoing cleanup efforts and worsen the humanitarian situation in affected communities.
“Locals who are members of the YEAC Youth Volunteers Network under the auspices of the One Million Youth Volunteers Network of Human Rights Defenders and Promoters in the Niger Delta, as well as our Crude Oil Spill Alert System, COSAS, have reported that the spill was caused by equipment failure on a Christmas tree located in the community,” Dr. Fyneface stated.
He called on the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency, NOSDRA, to promptly launch a Joint Investigation Visit to ascertain the cause and scale of the spill.
“We urge NOSDRA to act swiftly by carrying out a JIV to the spill point and invoking relevant sections of the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021 to ensure that whoever is responsible for this spill is held accountable,” he said.
The incident adds to growing concerns over oil industry operations in the Niger Delta, where communities continue to suffer from repeated spills, pollution, and health hazards. Ogale, one of the UNEP-identified sites in the UNEP Environmental Assessment of Ogoniland, has long been marked for underground water remediation under the Hydrocarbon Pollution Remediation Project, HYPREP.
