President Muhammadu Buhari
Nigeria is seeking permission in the English courts to appeal the accrued nearly $10bn arbitration award, granted to Process & Industrial Developments (P&ID) in 2017, despite having missed the 28-day appeal deadline.
The Nigerian government said new information came to light only in late 2019.
P&ID, a firm set up to carry out a gas project in Nigeria, won a $6.6 billion arbitration award after the 2010 deal collapsed. The award has been accruing interest since 2013 and is now worth nearly $10 billion.
In an online court hearing, the government’s lawyer said it has evidence of payments from companies related to P&ID to Vera Taiga, one 11 days before the deal was signed.
Vera’s mother, Grace Taiga, was the chief lawyer for the Petroleum Ministry at the time.
The government said one payment of $4,969.50 was made on Dec. 30 2009, and a second of $5,000 on Jan. 31 2012.
The payments came to light following a U.S. discovery order in New York, it said. The government also said P&ID officials, and companies linked to it, paid several other officials in relation to the deal.
The hearing will continue on Tuesday, and the judge’s ruling will determine whether the government can continue its appeal and present its full case of alleged fraud in the English courts.
REUTERS
