Odidi community petitions NOSDRA over 5-month oil spill from Heritage Pipeline

Odidi Federated Community in Warri South-West LGA, Delta State, has petitioned the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency, NOSDRA, to sanction Heritage Energy Operational Services Limited over what it describes as a continuous oil spill from the Trans-Forcados Pipeline since February 19, 2026.

In a letter signed by Principal Counsel, Dr. Eric K. Omare of E.K. Omare & Co., the community accused Heritage of failing to report the incident within 24 hours, refusing to carry out cleanup, and violating Sections 6(2) and 6(3) of the NOSDRA Act.

According to the petition, the spill occurred on February 19, 2026, from the Trans-Forcados Pipeline, a major crude evacuation line transporting production from OMLs 4, 38, 41, 42, 34 and 26 to the Forcados Export Terminal.

Community leaders, including Chairman Mr. Truston Gbenekama, Secretary-General Chief Bene Mamamu, and PRO Terry Ogisi, said a Joint Investigation Visit was conducted on February 20 and 21, 2026. Corrosion and operational error were identified as the causes. A copy of the JIV report signed by all parties was attached to the petition.

Despite this, the community alleged that Heritage failed to repair the corrosion point or halt the spread of the spill.

The petition stated that the spill has crippled fishing and other economic activities in Odidi. It also alleged damage to land, waterways, fishing equipment, drinking water and aquatic life.

“Our Clients can no longer fish to earn a living; they suffer gas suffocation from the spill site and other health hazards. They cannot even light firewood or gas cylinders for fear of explosion,” the letter read. A video documenting the impact was also submitted to NOSDRA.

The community said the spill has persisted for an unprecedented period since oil was discovered in Odidi in the 1960s.

Odidi Federated Community is demanding that NOSDRA:

● Sanction Heritage with penalties under Section 6 of the NOSDRA Act - N500,000 for failure to report and N1,000,000 for every day of failure to clean up, from February 19, 2026, until compliance.

● Compel Heritage to immediately fix the spill point, clean and remediate the impacted areas, and pay fair and adequate compensation to affected persons and the community.

The petition was also copied to the Minister of Environment, Chairmen of the Senate and House Committees on Environment, the Delta State Commissioner for Environment, and the NOSDRA Zonal Coordinator in Warri.

As of press time, Heritage Energy Operational Services Limited had not issued a public response to the allegations.