Mayo News Online: Shell disappointed at mediation rejection: “SHELL E&P Ireland have promised to continue to seek means of opening dialogue with the Rossport Five in light of the refusal by the five men to accept an offer of mediation from the company”: Posted Thursday 22 Sept 2005

Report by Padraic Burns

SHELL E&P Ireland have promised to continue to seek means of opening dialogue with the Rossport Five in light of the refusal by the five men to accept an offer of mediation from the company. The men, who are now 83 days in Cloverhill Prison, Dublin, last week turned down an offer by Shell to meet the men through their legal representatives.

Andy Pyle, SEPIL Managing Director, said that professional mediation offered a real opportunity for both parties to try to resolve the impasse. "Given the current deadlock, we believed that mediation could have greatly assisted both parties," said Mr Pyle.

"We will re-examine all remaining viable options. We would ask the men to also consider their position and we are willing to examine other proposals from them in regard to how dialogue can be opened given that they find our proposal of mediation unacceptable," he said.

Shell also confirmed that it has successfully carried out critical environmental works at the Bellanaboy site in order to prevent a pollution incident. The works entailed closing a number of drains to prevent untreated water from entering local watercourses in the event of heavy rainfall. Operations manager, Mark Carrigy, said that full access was provided to the protestors to demonstrate the work that needed carrying out. "The Monitoring Committee and Mayo County Council had highlighted publicly that the works were urgent. However, those blockading the site took the view that the works were neither urgent nor necessary. Given that a pollution incident was possible we put a temporary measure in place to secure the situation and the work was carried out in a manner designed to cause the least amount of confrontation with those who continued to block the site," he said.

Meanwhile, a delegation including Dr Jerry Cowley, TD, has travelled to Norway to meet with officials of Statoil and the Energy MP from the newly-elected Labour/Socialist Left Party. The Norwegian Government owns 71% of Statoil and so holds a 37% share in the Corrib Gas Field, along with Shell and Marathon. 

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