THE WALL STREET JOURNAL/DOW JONES NEWSWIRES: Shell's Nigeria Crt Action Doesn't Target NLC Strike – Co: “Royal Dutch/Shell Group Monday denied it was trying to stop a nationwide strike planned Nov. 16 by Nigeria's leading union, that is threatening to target oil exports.” (ShellNews.net)

DOW JONES NEWSWIRES

November 1, 2004

LAGOS -- Royal Dutch/Shell Group Monday denied it was trying to stop a nationwide strike planned Nov. 16 by Nigeria's leading union, that is threatening to target oil exports.

In a statement, Shell Petroleum Development Co. said its recent court action was only aimed at stopping further wildcat strikes by the two oil workers' unions, Nupeng and Pengassan.

The Nigerian Labor Congress has called a nationwide strike to protest hikes in the price of fuel and for the first time plans to target oil exports.

Oil major Shell opened court action Monday to block a threatened strike targeting oil in the world's No. 7 crude exporter, but lost a first-round bid for an interim injunction quelling the unions.

"The legal action has no relationship whatsoever with the NLC protest against the fuel price increase," Shell said.

It said it sought an injunction against further wildcat strikes such as the two-day action Oct. 7 that it says broke collective bargaining agreements with the two unions.

Strike action in November could send new shocks through the global oil price market.

Unions called the Nov. 16 strike after giving President Olusegun Obasanjo until Sunday to reverse September's 23% increase in domestic fuel prices.

Union leaders singled out Royal Dutch/Shell - Nigeria's largest petroleum producer - which they said was trying to block the strike in the courts.

-By Vincent Nwanma and Shai Oster; Dow Jones Newswires; +234-1-585-0849; vinwanma@beta.linkserve.com