It has been a moot point whether the Nigerian Minister of Petroleum has unfettered discretion to renew, withhold or delay renewal of petroleum oil mining leases (OMLs). This paper analyses the recent decision of Nigeria’s Federal High Court in Shell v Minister of Petroleum in this regard. It argues that the renewal of OMLs is a matter of course once the OML holder has performed its obligations under the petroleum lease and the Petroleum Act. It further contends that the Petroleum Act having preserved the duration of pre-1969 OMLs, their renewals ought to be for the same duration.

中文翻译：

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确定在尼日利亚延长石油租赁的部长级裁量权的范围–壳牌诉石油部长

尼日利亚石油部长是否具有不受约束的自由裁量权，以续签，保留或延迟续签石油开采租赁（OML），一直是一个有争议的问题。本文分析了尼日利亚联邦高等法院在壳牌诉石油部长一案中在这方面的最新裁决。它辩称，一旦OML持有人履行了《石油租赁》和《石油法》规定的义务，OML的续约是理所当然的。它还进一步争辩说，《石油法》保留了1969年前的OML的期限，其续期应保持相同的期限。