It took one call from the crew on
Gazprom’s Prirazlomnaya rig to have an armed squad of Russia’s special forces
there within an hour. The very next day, Russian agents illegally
boarded the Arctic Sunrise and arrested all 30 people on board.
The group of 28 activists and two
journalists are now being held in Russian jail on trumped-up hooliganism
charges, for peaceful protest against drilling for oil in the Arctic.
Complicit in their arrest is the most powerful company that most people have
never heard of.
So just who are Gazprom?
Gazprom is the largest
oil and gas company in the world. Around 10% of Russian state revenue comes from Gazprom, which is majority
owned by the government. Their strong links to government are
clear even in spite of the total lack of transparency that surrounds
the internal mechanisms of Russian politics
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But even a giant like Gazprom has its weak spots. And we hit a raw nerve by
protesting at one of the weakest spots of all – the Prirazlomnaya rig.
Preparations for the Prirazlomnaya rig began in 2001, but to date not a drop of
oil has been pumped. This year, as they have consistently claimed in the past,
Gazprom stated that extraction would begin, and as yet there is still no sign
of oil production.
Gazprom needs to make this embarrassingly expensive and unsafe failure
turn a profit. And they need help to do it. But just who would join up with a
company with such a disastrous safety record in the
Arctic?
Enter Shell.
Shell is on the cusp of signing an important deal with Gazprom. If it goes through,
Shell will give Gazprom the money, technology and expertise that they need to
start drilling, potentially becoming the first company to produce oil
commercially from above the Arctic ice line, where spills are next to
impossible to clean up.
As a prospective partner of Gazprom, Shell has the power to pressure them into
securing the release of the Arctic 30. But by staying silent, it looks like Shell
is prepared to put its relationship with Gazprom above the release of these
prisoners of conscience.
So how about some good news now?
Gazprom is not all-powerful. Like any company, it will respond to concerns
raised by its customers and business partners, particularly if it risks losing
them.
It’s time to pressure Gazprom’s key partners across the UK and beyond to help free the Arctic 30.
Gazprom has the key, and Shell can make them use it.