Ahmedpur inferno: Shell pays Rs250m in fine, compensation

ISLAMABAD: Shell Pakistan Limited has paid Rs258 million on account of fine and compensation for the deceased and injured following oil tanker incident in Ahmedpur Sharqia.

A senior official of Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) said that in compliance of OGRA’s order issued on July 6 regarding oil incident of Ahmedpur Sharqia, Shell Pakistan has deposited the amount of Rs10 million fine. It also paid amount of Rs219 million on account of compensation for 219 deceased and Rs29.5 million compensation for 59 injured.

The amount will be distributed among the affected by OGRA in the presence of government of Punjab district administration and Shell representatives.



OGRA had held a private oil company, Shell Pakistan Limited (SPL), responsible for Ahmedpur Sharqia oil tanker fire, which claimed more than 200 lives. According to the report, the oil tanker of the private company did not meet the set requirements. Moreover, the fitness certificate issued to the oil tanker also turned out to be fake.

On June 25, hundreds of people were killed and many others injured after a fire erupted in an oil tanker, which had overturned near Bahawalpur. In an investigative report of the incident, OGRA held the private company responsible and fined a meagre penalty of Rs10 million. In addition to penalty, the regulator had directed to pay Rs1 million as compensation to the families of the victims and Rs0.5 million to the injured.

In a statement, Shell Pakistan Limited said that it had made this payment to OGRA in full on July 12, 2017. As agreed with the regulator, compensation to those impacted by the tragedy near Bahawalpur will be disbursed by OGRA.



Shell Pakistan had agreed to pay the fine imposed by OGRA to comply with the regulator’s directive. However, we do so while reserving the right to contest the fine. The matter is under investigation, and we will decide on the appropriate course of action once more information is known and investigations have concluded.

While Shell Pakistan Limited does not accept liability, we clearly recognise that this was a tragedy that has deeply affected the community as the holy month of Ramzan ended, Shell said adding that therefore, as an extension of our early and ongoing humanitarian efforts to secure medical aid for the injured and provide food and other relief to the impacted families.



The company pledged to continue to work with various aid agencies to provide immediate relief, and work with the relevant authorities to identify the recipients and ensure that the above assistance reaches the people affected. We also look forward to working with the regulators, emergency services and the wider oil and gas industry to improve safety standards and address any gaps between industry practice and regulatory standards, it said.