Justice S.B. Belgore of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court in Abuja has nullified ongoing arbitration proceedings at the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) in London, initiated against Aiteo Eastern Exploration and Production Company Limited. The court ruled that the arbitration, instituted by a group of lenders who financed Aiteo’s acquisition of Oil Mining Lease (OML) 29, was conducted in violation of subsisting injunctive orders.

 

The ruling, delivered on Tuesday, July 8, 2025, stemmed from a legal application brought by Tempo Energy Nigeria Ltd, one of the parties involved in the original financing structure.

 

Aiteo acquired OML 29 and the Nembe Creek Trunk Line from Shell in 2014 for approximately $3.01 billion. Company founder, Benedict Peters, reportedly contributed nearly $1 billion in personal equity to complete the transaction and revive oil production on the asset.

 

The dispute traces back to a 2014 multi-party financing arrangement involving several Nigerian and international financial institutions. Tempo Energy alleged that the lenders breached certain obligations under the facility agreements. On December 11, 2020, some of the lenders—without including Tempo—initiated legal proceedings in the High Court of England and Wales and commenced arbitration at the ICC in London.

 

In response, Tempo filed suit FCT/HC/CV/079/2021 on January 14, 2021, seeking injunctive relief to halt further action in the foreign court and arbitration. On January 22, 2021, the FCT High Court granted interim orders restraining the defendants from continuing the foreign proceedings.

 

Despite the court’s injunction, the defendants—including African Finance Corporation, Ecobank Nigeria, First Bank, GTBank, Fidelity Bank, Shell Western, Citibank, and others—proceeded with the ICC arbitration between 2021 and 2024.

 

On April 25, 2025, the Court of Appeal in Abuja upheld the FCT High Court’s orders, affirming their validity and dismissing the lenders’ appeal as an abuse of court process. The appellate court awarded N1.5 million in costs against the appellants and emphasized that actions taken in defiance of a valid court order are legally void.

 

Following this, Tempo’s counsel, Kehinde Ogunwumiju (SAN), returned to the High Court in May 2025 to request a restorative order setting aside the ICC proceedings, arguing that the arbitration had proceeded in flagrant disregard of the court’s interim injunction.

 

In opposition, lawyers for the defendants, including Mrs. Joke Aliyu and Mr. Babatunde Fagbohunlu (SAN), filed a preliminary objection challenging the FCT High Court’s jurisdiction over foreign arbitration matters. Justice Belgore dismissed the objection as meritless and an abuse of judicial process.

 

The court subsequently granted Tempo’s application, declaring the ICC arbitration proceedings null and void for violating valid injunctive orders. Justice Belgore also reaffirmed that the interim injunctions granted in 2021 remain binding on all parties and must be strictly obeyed. He ordered the defendants to pay N500,000 in costs to Tempo and adjourned the matter to September 29, 2025, for hearing of the remaining consolidated applications.

 

Separately, Aiteo had sued Shell Petroleum Development Company in a 2021 case (FHC/ABJ/CS/738/2021), accusing the oil major of fraud and misrepresentation in the sale of its 30% stake in OML 29. Aiteo alleged Shell failed to disclose the deteriorated condition of the oil wells and the extent of attacks by crude oil thieves, which affected production and repayment capacity.

 

The financing consortium reportedly committed about $2 billion to the deal, with contributions including: Zenith Bank ($323m), First Bank and GTB ($200m each), Fidelity Bank ($175m), AFC ($125m), Ecobank and Union Bank ($100m each), and Sterling Bank ($60m). Shell Western supplied over $512 million in trade financing. Benedict Peters provided nearly $900 million in equity funding, with Tempo Energy contributing an additional $136 million.