General
Court to Decide N5.74bn NLNG Contract Breach Case July 16
By Adedapo Adesanya
A High Court in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, has set July 16, 2025, to decide a case in which the Nigeria LNG (NLNG) was accused of breaching a contract it awarded to a local contractor, Macobarb International Limited.
Justice Chinwendu Nwogu, which is handling the matter with the suit number PHC/2013/CS/2022, will also decide and rule if the breach led to costs as high as N5.74 billion, which the claimants are seeking.
The fixing of the date of judgment came on Tuesday, June 24, 2025, after counsels for both parties adopted and adumbrated their final written addresses, each seeking to convince the judge to rule in their client’s favour.
Macobarb had sued NLNG, claiming it breached the terms of contract and that this breach led to various costs amounting to N5.74 billion, saying the contract was deemed to still be running and that cost is rising.
Adopting their address, the lead counsel to Macobarb, Mr Benefit Vilokpo, said, “Claimants have shown by their pleadings and documentary evidence that NLNG breached its terms of contract, and that Macobarb has demonstrated that the purported letter of termination dated 27th November, 2015, is unlawful, null, and void.”
He also said contract agreement made several provisions for ‘Standby Payments’ and that claimants have also shown that they are entitled to Standby Payments.
The claimants’ lead counsel submitted in his adopted final address what he considered issues for determination, adding that the built their claim on the ground that the person that terminated the contract (Mr Emeka Ohiri) was not known to the contract.
It was claimed that the Contract Holder is a Mr Dweller Francis, clarifying that the said Mr Francis never served Macobarb any termination letter.
The claimant counsel also said and pointed to the sections in their final address that the contract provided for standdown time.
The claimants final address noted that to demonstrate that the contract is still in existence, the defendant called for a meeting on the February 19, 2016 termed “Project close-out meeting”.
The contract close-out meeting with signatures of all the attendees showed where it was stated that to close out the contract, NLNG will have to establish what the costs for the materials delivered to NLNG were, as well as the cost for demobilising and to prepare the payment certificates for all items of the contract executed by the contractor.
Macobarb asked the court to view it that the contract is yet to be closed out and to also note that the defendant (NLNG) admitted receipt of materials including 20ft container from the claimants.
On its part, the NLNG lead counsel, Mr Bayo Aderelegbe, asked the court to determine whether the second claimant was a party to the contract and can sue in respect of the contract.
But Macobarb countered this, arguing that this contention by the NLNG had earlier been dismissed by the same court and judge when it was raised during preliminary objection and that in fact, the judge had awarded a fine of N200,000 against the NLNG.
The NLNG counsel also wants the court to determine whether his client breached the contract as alleged by the claimants; whether the defendant wrongfully terminated the contract; and whether the claimants were entitled to the N5.74 billion.
Another crucial matter both parties addressed is the issue of ‘Performance Bond’ mentioned in the contract. The NLNG submitted that the claimant (contractor) failed to submit it within 14 days and that this was the basis for termination of the contract.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
For the second consecutive month, Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals has become the largest supplier of jet fuel to Europe, outpacing the United States of America (USA).
Data from Kpler showed that in July 2026, the Lagos-based oil facility, which has the capacity to refine 700,000 barrels of crude oil per day, produced more than 400,000 tonnes of jet fuel.
In June 2026, the private refinery, owned by Mr Aliko Dangote, exported 466,000 tonnes to Europe, underscoring its growing influence on international fuel markets and highlighting Nigeria’s emergence as a strategic player in global refined petroleum trade.
The latest data indicated that Dangote Refinery accounts for approximately 20 per cent of Europe’s total jet fuel imports last month.
The sustained export performance marks a significant milestone for the refinery, demonstrating its ability to consistently supply one of the world’s most demanding fuel markets with aviation fuel that meets stringent international quality specifications. Europe imported approximately 2.06 million tonnes of jet fuel in July, with Dangote accounting for the single largest share of those imports, ahead of traditional suppliers from the United States and the Middle East.
Industry observers say the refinery is rapidly reshaping established Atlantic Basin fuel trade flows by offering a competitive alternative to long-standing suppliers. While European buyers have traditionally relied on refiners in the United States, the Middle East and Asia, Dangote’s strategic location on Nigeria’s Atlantic coast, combined with its scale, modern technology and export capability, has enabled it to become an increasingly important source of aviation fuel for European markets.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
President Bola Tinubu on Thursday directed the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to vacate the court ordering the freezing of the bank account of the Osun Srate government.
In a statement today by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga, the President said he’s “deeply embarrassed not by the EFCC’s exercise of its mandate backed by a court order” because of its timing, which is just a few days to the governorship election in the state next Saturday.
According to him, actions of an institution of State, especially at the Federal level, is always credited to me, as the President, even when I may not have had any prior knowledge of the action.
“Since assuming office, I have consistently maintained that anti-corruption and law enforcement agencies must be allowed to discharge their statutory responsibilities independently, professionally, without fear or favour, or political interference. I have therefore deliberately refrained from directing or interfering in the operational activities of the EFCC or any other investigative or prosecutorial agency because I firmly believe that strong democratic institutions, operating within the confines of the law, are indispensable to democratic good governance and the rule of law.
“As President, I am committed to allowing institutions of State to function and take any action they consider necessary in the interest of proper governance without the need for any prior approval. Indeed, that is why institutions are set up by law with clearly defined powers. While I am yet to be fully apprised of the facts which informed the action of EFCC in approaching the court to obtain the said order freezing the Osun State Government account, I am not in the slightest doubt that the timing of the action of EFCC is inauspicious, and therefore I feel compelled to intervene.
“Osun State is only a few days away from its gubernatorial election. Therefore, nothing ought to be done to give an impression that the EFCC or indeed any other agency of the federal government is being used to interfere with the election.
“Based on the foregoing premise, I am duty-bound to issue a directive on this issue in consonance with the overriding public interest in preserving public confidence and the integrity, credibility, and fairness of our democratic process.
“Accordingly, I have directed the EFCC to immediately proceed to the court to vacate the order and discontinue whatever action it has instituted against the Osun State Government in this regard,” the statement stated.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has explained why it initiated a move to freeze the bank account of the Osun State government.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Governor of Osun State, Mr Ademola Adeleke, claimed that the anti-money laundering agency asked one of its bankers, First Bank, not to release funds to the state government.
According to the Governor, this was part of the strategies to frustrate his administration ahead of the August 15, 2026, governorship election in the state.
Reacting to the issue on Wednesday night, the EFCC, in a statement, said it has been investigating the state government since March 2026 over an alleged “fraudulent handling of Ecology Funds, Intervention Funds and Federal Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) account to the tune of N11.0 billion.
The organisation noted that some officials of the state government, especially the Accountant General of the State, have had interview sessions with investigators of the EFCC.
“These ongoing investigations of the state government would not have warranted any placement of Post No Debit order on its account but for the precipitate and unwarranted movement of funds from the accounts to different suspicious accounts since August 2, 2026.
“The commission noticed huge transfers of funds into different corporate entities and had to swiftly halt the trend by freezing the accounts from which such heavy funds are being moved,” parts of the statement said.
In the disclosure, the agency noted that its preventive mandate is a public-inclined framework of safeguarding public funds, assets and resources, stressing that it cannot “watch idly while a state government’s account is being pillaged.”
“While the commission is fully aware of the impending governorship election in Osun State, it has a responsibility to act in defence of the sanctity of the funds of the state. It will be uncharitable for the commission to allow an excuse of an upcoming election to fold its arms to perform its legally-assigned functions,” it pointed out.
The EFCC disclosed that it is “keeping watch over the finances of other states like Osun State. Many of these states are on the investigative radar of the commission to ensure accountability and probity. The commission has always pointed out that it is non-partisan and non-sectarian but always working in the overall interests of Nigerians. The Osun State government account was frozen to save public funds from being looted.”
The organisation urged the public “to ignore false narratives and deliberate demonisation of the works of the EFCC. The interests of all Nigerians are greater and will always be protected by the commission.”
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