The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) limited has settled long-running disputes with Shell Plc, ExxonMobil Corporation, Chevron Corporation, and Equinor after it agreed on a deal to extend production sharing agreements.
It was learnt that development came days after NNPC Limited signed a contract extension with the oil majors, prompting the four major oil companies to terminate ongoing litigation once the new arrangements take effect.
The agreement according to NNPC Limited could put to an end the protracted dispute between the state-owned company and the contractor parties in Oil Mining Leases (OMLs) 128, 130, 132 and 133, as well as 138 PSCs.
“The deal was part of the corporation’s dispute resolution and renewal strategy of 2017, aimed at securing out-of-court settlement of all disputes around the 1993 PSC and agreeing on terms for their renewal,” the Group Chief Executive Officer of the NNPC Limited, Mele Kyari, said while speaking at the signing event.
It was gathered that lawyers for Equinor and Chevron asked the judge to suspend the case until the end of October to allow sufficient time for the conditions to be satisfied and for the settlement agreement to become effective.
Once that happens, the companies “expect to withdraw this action,” the letter said.
It noted that Exxon and Shell, in a separate letter, said they anticipate being able to do the same after 60 days.
Equinor and Chevron filed a suit in the United States asking a court to enforce a US$1.1 billion award issued by an arbitration tribunal against the NNPC in 2015.
