After a string of losses, First Bank Nigeria Limited (FBN) has won a battle to set aside the ruling of Justice E.A Obile of the Federal High Court, Port Harcourt which had in March reversed the ex parte order to seize the cargo of crude on board FPSO Tamara Tokoni, but lost the war to retain the crude and monetary value therefrom.
The bank had earlier lost in the case before Justice Lewis Alagoa and Justice Deinde Dipeolu, both of the Federal High Court, Lagos.
The third case they lost was before Justice E.A Obile of the Federal High Court, Port Harcourt which was the subject of the bank’s appeal to the Court of Appeal on a narrow ground where they won the battle but lost the war.
The Court of Appeal allowed the appeal filed by First Bank of Nigeria, setting aside an earlier decision of the Federal High Court in Port Harcourt in its case against GHL.
The Court of Appeal directed that crude be sold and the proceeds be paid into a court-administered escrow pending the hearing and determination of the arbitration and other processes currently ongoing.
Court of Appeal strongly expressed its determination to protect the crude from First Bank dissipation pending determination of the court case and/or arbitration.
The Court sitting in Abuja, appointed the Chief Re gistrar of the Court, in liaison with the Admiralty Marshal to take charge, possession and to secure any cargo of crude oil on board FPSO Tamara Tokoni against expropriation, waste, dissipation and or fraudulent disposition pending the hearing and determination of a suit before the trial court and or court of arbitration in the case.
A three-man panel led by Justice Hamma Barka while allowing the appeal filed by First Bank said the interest of justice in the case demanded that the res (subject matter) be preserved pending the determination of the case still pending at the high court and before an arbitration panel.
The court also issued an order directing payment of the proceeds of each sale into a single interest yielding escrow account in the name of the Chief Registrar of the Court of Appeal pending the hearing of the suit before the trial court and or before the court of arbitration.
GHL had taken First Bank to arbitration and the process is on going with a decision expected before the end of the year.
The FPSO has crude oil belonging to GHL, Conoil/NNPC. First Bank claimed that GHL owed it $225.8 million in debt. However, GHL strongly denied the claim, saying FBN on several occasions breached the 2021 Subrogation Agreement and no payment is due.
In the Appeal, GHL accused FBN of abusing an ex parte freezing orders when it selectively released part of the crude in the FPSO to Conoil and NNPCL. But the Court of Appeal has now stopped all that, giving all possession and control of all crude in the FPSO to the Chief Registrar assisted by the Admiralty Marshall of the Court of Appeal.
In its ruling on Thursday, the Appeal Court said the main issue in contention was the need to preserve the res, being crude oil in FPSO. It also ordered that proceeds from the sale of the cargo be paid to an escrow account in the name of the Chief Registrar.
The funds will remain under the custody of the court until the matter is determined either at trial or in arbitration, it was learnt. The parties were further directed to bear their own costs.
Emmanuel Addeh
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