"The motion was overwhelming passed and the Senate Committee on Petroleum (Upstream) was asked to monitor compliance," a Senate spokesman said.

Shell Petroleum Development Corp (SPDC), a unit owned by Royal Dutch/Shell, said it was not aware of the resolution.

"This resolution has not been communicated to SPDC," the company said in a statement, adding that the resolution would be binding "only if the law backs it".

SPDC operates through a joint venture in Nigeria in which it owns 30 per cent while state-run Nigerian National Petroleum Corp owns 55 per cent.

SPDC is also 10 per cent owned by France's Total and five percent by Agip, a unit of Italy's ENI.

The passage of the resolution through the Senate on Tuesday followed a petition by members of the Ijaw tribe in the southern Bayelsa state against Shell which was presented to the lower House of Representatives in 2003 and reviewed by an independent legal advisory panel set up by the lower house.

A company source said the case would probably end up in the courts.

-Nampa-Reuters

Marketplace News Headlines Of The Last 48 Hours

•  Governments and business collude in deaths of trade unionists, survey reveals
•  FNB offers cross-border prepaid airtime
•  Lena Blomstrand: Nuclear power is an environmental disaster
•  IMF finally approves US$2,1bn loan to Iceland
•  Steady as she goes, says Captain Manuel to Good Ship SA
•  Tourism body supports SME sector
•  Bannerman secures N$132m for Namibian project
•  Forsys strikes mega deal with Forrest
•  Air travel nosedives as recessionary clouds gather
•  Global labour union welcomes re-election of ILO boss
•  Booming Gulf looks overseas for agriculture needs
•  Farming development at Ndonga Linena on track
•  Govt aims to decrease Nam's dependence on imports
•  School's out The Tukwafeni Project: an activity beyond the classroom
•  Electricity theft cost firms thousands in Maputo