Blood on the crude. That is the story from a cache of internal documents seen by this bureau. Shell, the Anglo-Dutch giant, is facing an almighty storm. The papers, leaked from a former executive, show senior management were told for years that the Trans-Niger Pipeline was leaking like a sieve. They knew it was poisoning the creeks and farmlands of Ogoniland. They did not stop pumping. They kept the oil flowing. They kept the profits flowing.
The documents, spanning 2015 to 2019, contain stark warnings from engineers. Corrosion was eating the 60-year-old pipe. Spills were routine. One report calls the situation 'environmentally catastrophic'. Another flags 'imminent risk to life'. The response from London? Quiet. No shutdown. Just a tweak to the 'risk register'.
Now, the leaks are out. Literally and metaphorically. MPs on the International Development Committee are sharpening their knives. Expect them to demand Christopher Rudge, Shell’s UK chair, appear for a grilling. The mood in the Labour Party is ugly. Clive Lewis MP, a backbench firebrand, called it 'corporate murder by neglect'. That is strong language. It will stick.
The timing is brutal for Shell. They are already fighting a ruling from The Hague that they must pay compensation for a 2008 spill. This new evidence destroys their defence of 'we didn't know'. They knew. They chose not to act.
Inside the FCDO, officials are seething. A source told me the permanent secretary has asked for a 'comprehensive note' by Monday. Whitehall hate surprises. This is a grenade under the table.
What happens next? A judicial review is likely. Baroness Chakrabarti is already sniffing around, looking for a case. Shell’s share price will take a hit. But more importantly, the political cost is mounting. The government claims to be a global leader on climate and human rights. This leak makes a mockery of that. Expect Foreign Secretary David Lammy to issue a carefully worded statement expressing 'deep concern'. But the game is up. The mask is off.
In the Lobby, the whisper is that the Attorney General is studying the papers. If there is evidence of a criminal cover up, the Crown Prosecution Service could get involved. That would be unprecedented for a company of this size.
For now, the oil keeps flowing. But the pipeline to public trust has burst. Shell is running on fumes.
