A high-stakes legal battle is unfolding in Nigeria’s Federal High Court, where Justice Ambrose Lewis-Allagoa is set to rule on the representation rights of General Hydrocarbons Limited in its dispute with the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON). The case pits two Senior Advocates of Nigeria—Dr. Abiodun Layonu and Oluseye Opasanya—against each other, halting critical contempt proceedings against AMCON.
The legal clash centers on a $718 million non-performing loan extended by First Bank of Nigeria to Atlantic Energy Drilling Concept Nigeria Limited in 2011. The loan, secured against Oil Mining Leases (OMLs) 26, 30, 34, and 42, soured, leading First Bank to sell it as an Eligible Bank Asset to AMCON. This left AMCON with a $490 million exposure after discounts. In response, General Hydrocarbons Limited, majority-owned by media mogul Nduka Obaigbena, stepped in with a structured recovery plan to mitigate the situation.
In 2020, General Hydrocarbons entered a Subrogation Agreement with First Bank and AMCON, taking over operations of OMLs 120 and 121, which had been federally approved in 2021. The agreement established that General Hydrocarbons would develop these deep-offshore fields, sharing 50% of the profits with First Bank over an eight-year period. In return, First Bank committed to financing exploration and production activities, while using its profit share to settle the AMCON liability.
The arrangement helped First Bank report a N151 billion profit in 2021, avoiding what would have been a N302 billion loss at the time’s exchange rate. However, by mid-2024, cracks began to appear in the relationship between General Hydrocarbons and First Bank. Despite submitting over 70 funding requests for the development of OML 120, General Hydrocarbons experienced significant delays in payments—sometimes up to 67 days—leading to operational disruptions and a loss of $47 million. A near-miss incident on the Blackford Dolphin rig further highlighted the risks involved, with over 100 workers stranded without supplies.
In response to the mounting tension, an arbitral tribunal ruling on October 28, 2025, ordered General Hydrocarbons to pay First Bank $112,100 and N111.25 million in costs, rejecting claims of breach and upholding the subrogation terms. However, AMCON and First Bank escalated the matter, accusing General Hydrocarbons’ former management of revenue diversion, failure to pay contractors, and jeopardizing the operation of the FPSO Tamara Tokoni, which could ultimately lead to a license revocation.
On September 18, 2025, AMCON appointed Oluseyi Akinwunmi as Receiver/Manager via a deed registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission on September 27. This move was intended to prevent further asset deterioration under General Hydrocarbons’ management. Five days later, on September 23, 2025, Justice Lewis-Allagoa issued an interim injunction in Suit No. FHC/L/CS/1903/2025, barring AMCON, its managing director, First Bank, and the Attorney-General from enforcing rights against General Hydrocarbons or its assets—specifically the appointment of a receiver.
The injunction was reinforced on October 22, 2025, following General Hydrocarbons’ argument that it bore no direct debt to AMCON and that enforcement should target Atlantic Energy or First Bank according to the Loan Purchase Agreement. General Hydrocarbons also filed contempt charges against AMCON officials, including Chairman Bala Bello and Managing Director Gbenga Alade, for defying the injunction and misleading other courts.
On November 6, 2025, AMCON took further action by appointing a receiver and announcing a directive for banks to freeze accounts and creditors to submit claims within 30 days. Meanwhile, First Bank had secured a Mareva injunction on December 27, 2024, freezing $225.8 million in General Hydrocarbons’ assets linked to OML 120, and the Federal High Court in Port Harcourt had dismissed First Bank’s crude diversion claims in March 2025, although this was reversed by the Court of Appeal in September 2025.
AMCON wrote to 34 banks on November 6, 2025, demanding asset freezes, citing an October 24 Mareva order in a separate suit. General Hydrocarbons, meanwhile, continues to deny any $225 million debt, asserting that the loan remains in moratorium until commercial production begins, while pursuing over $1 billion in damages in various courts, including the Supreme Court.
The dispute over legal representation erupted on November 26, 2025, when Dr. Abiodun Layonu, representing General Hydrocarbons’ directors, and Oluseye Opasanya, representing the receiver, both announced their appearances in court. Layonu filed a December 3 affidavit asserting compliance with court directives and challenging the receivership as unlawful. Opasanya countered with a December 2 affidavit, presenting the appointment deed and citing Supreme Court precedent that directors’ powers “freeze” upon receivership, extinguishing their authority to engage counsel.
AMCON had secured enforcement from Justice Akintayo Aluko’s division, but General Hydrocarbons alleges non-disclosure of the original injunction. This dispute over counsel has further complicated the already complex legal and financial landscape surrounding the case.
