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About POGO's Federal Contractor Misconduct Database (FCMD)

The government awards contracts to companies with histories of misconduct such as contract fraud and environmental, ethics, and labor violations. In the absence of a centralized federal database listing instances of misconduct, the Project On Government Oversight (POGO) is providing such data. We believe that it will lead to improved contracting decisions and public access to information about how the government spends hundreds of billions of taxpayer money each year on goods and services. Report an instance of misconduct »

Royal Dutch Shell PLC

Violations of Nigerian Nuclear Regulations

Date: 03/01/2007 (Date of Charging - approximate)

Misconduct Type: Environment

Enforcement Agency: International

Contracting Party: None

Court Type: Criminal

Amount: $0

Disposition: Pending

Synopsis: In March 2007, the Nigerian government charged Royal Dutch Shell and three other foreign companies with illegally transporting and dumping radioactive material used in oil and gas exploration in the Niger Delta. Shell officials denied the allegations of any misbehavior on the part of Shell Petroleum Development Co. of Nigeria Ltd., known locally as SPDC, but did acknowledge that some equipment for drilling being transported through the region using radioactive material has gone missing and that the company was making a "concerted effort” to track it down. The government directed the police to keep several executives from the companies under strict surveillance until a hearing is scheduled.