The November 2021 oil spill in Nembe, Bayelsa State, started at least three days earlier than the owner of the well and the federal government publicly acknowledged, a PREMIUM TIMES investigation has found.
The spill, one of Nigeria’s worst in recent years, lasted more than a month and caused extensive environmental damage with more than a hundred thousand barrels of oil spewed into the environment, according to expert estimates.
Our review of the disaster has shown that oil and gas fumes from a wellhead operated by the Nigerian firm, Aiteo, caused large scale destruction of aquatic lives and damaged water bodies and farms. Residents have also reported health problems after the incident occurred.
Aiteo Eastern Exploration and Production Company, the operator of the well said it “reported” the spill on November 5, and the Federal Ministry of Environment said the incident started November 5.
“Aiteo Eastern Exploration and Production Company (AEEPCO), Operator of the NNPC /Aiteo Joint Venture of Oil Mining Lease (OML) 29 on Friday, 5 November 2021, reported a hydrocarbon well head leak in its Santa Barbara, Southwest field, in Nembe Local Government Area of Bayelsa State,” the company said in a statement on November 22.
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