...[In] the case of Ikot Ada Udo the court ruled that the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Ltd (SPDC) could have prevented the sabotage by plugging the well at an earlier stage. In this particular case saboteurs opened the valve (above surface) with a wrench. In 2010, SPDC took the necessary measures to contain the well. This was also acknowledged by the court. For Ikot Ada Udo the proceedings will continue between SPDC and Mr. Akpan to establish damages, if any. The court clarified this in a press statement on its website on 30 January: “The amount of these damages shall be determined in separate proceedings (the so called damages assessment procedure), since the parties in these proceedings have only litigated about the liability up till present, and they have not litigated yet about the amount of the damages.”...However, Friends of the Earth has publicly announced that it will appeal the decision of the court in the Ikot Ada Udo case. This means that, even if SPDC were to settle damages with Mr. Akpan right away, litigation would still not end.