At least two members of Fossil Free, a UK-based group advocating for cleaner energy, got locked up in the Tower of London following a demonstration that disrupted the 29th ICIS World Base Oils & Lubricants Conference on Thursday.

The activists interrupted the presentation of Shell chief Felix Faber, with chants of “Justice for Nigeria” and “Clean up, pay up”.

Mr Faber’s presentation was cut short as delegates of the events were asked to leave the hall, per an announcement by the event compere.

Two fossil fuel activists mounted the podium and accused Shell of destroying the Niger Delta region of Nigeria due to activities of oil exploration.

“Shell has been polluting the Niger Delta for the last 17 years. You have been poisoning the land,” the Fossil Fuel demonstrator. “You have been poisoning the water and you have been poisoning the air. We demand justice for Nigeria.”

“Pay up! Clean up!,” the environmental activists chanted, an incident which led to their detention at the Tower of London, a statement by Fossil Free stated. 

“Our activists are locked in the Tower of London! They were there to disrupt an oily drinks reception with a banner reading “Shell Kills,” the statement read.

The protest coincided with a hearing at the Royal Court of Justice which involved  the Nigerian Bille and Ogale communities vs Shell. 

King Godwin Bebe Okpabi, Ogale community leader, said Shell Corporation would rather spend millions of dollars to hire the best lawyers than make the water clean and safe to drink for Ogale residents before exiting Nigeria.

“The water that Shell has left for my people, this is poison,” Mr Okpabi said, holding up a bottle of contaminated water. “And they are spending millions of dollars to pay the best lawyers in the world so that they will not clean my land.”

Shell in January 2024 announced plans to sell off its Nigerian onshore subsidiary, Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC).

Mr Okpabi claimed that Shell’s oil extraction activities since 1958 caused his community devastation and reduced the life expectancy of affected residents by 10 years compared to other non-oil regions.

But Shell defended itself arguing that the incidence of oil spillage was mostly caused by vandals, illegal miners.

The court case “does little to address the real problem in the Niger Delta: oil spills due to theft, illegal refining and sabotage, which cause the most environmental damage,” Reuters cited a Shell spokesperson as saying.