Nigeria’s Supreme Court Lifts Asset Freeze on Nestoil and Neconde, Clears Way for Trial Court Proceedings
Nigeria’s Supreme Court has overturned a Court of Appeal order that froze the assets and operations of Nestoil Limited, Neconde Energy Limited, and related entities in a dispute involving an alleged $1.1 billion debt claim by FBNQuest Merchant Bank Limited and First Trustees Limited.
The ruling is a significant development in one of Nigeria’s high-profile corporate and energy-sector legal disputes, with potential implications for creditor rights, corporate governance, and investor confidence in the country’s business environment.
In a unanimous judgment delivered by a five-member panel, the apex court held that the Court of Appeal exceeded its jurisdiction when it granted an ex parte application that effectively restored restrictions on the companies’ assets and operations.
Delivering the lead judgment, Justice Stephen Adah faulted the appellate court for issuing injunctive orders against Nestoil and Neconde when the substantive issues were not properly before it. The Supreme Court further criticised the appellate court’s handling of the matter, describing aspects of its intervention as a misuse of judicial process.
The dispute stems from debt recovery proceedings initiated by lenders, including FBNQuest Merchant Bank Limited and First Trustees Limited, over financing arrangements linked to oil and gas assets operated by the companies.
In October 2025, the Federal High Court in Lagos granted an ex parte Mareva injunction freezing the companies’ bank accounts, assets, and shares across more than 20 financial institutions pending determination of the debt claims.
However, Nestoil and Neconde challenged the order, arguing that it had automatically expired under the Federal High Court Civil Procedure Rules after a motion seeking its discharge was filed.
In November 2025, Justice Daniel Osiagor of the Federal High Court ruled that the interim order had lapsed by operation of law and was no longer valid.
Subsequently, the Court of Appeal granted an interim restorative injunction that returned control of the companies’ assets and operations to a receiver-manager appointed by the lending institutions. The appellate court also set aside actions taken by the companies following the Federal High Court’s ruling, effectively allowing the asset restrictions to continue.
The Supreme Court has now nullified that appellate decision, restoring the legal position established by the Federal High Court and allowing Nestoil and Neconde to resume full control of their assets and operations while the substantive dispute continues.
The ruling clears the way for the underlying debt recovery case to proceed before the trial court, where the competing claims of the lenders and the companies will be determined on their merits.
Legal analysts say the judgment reinforces judicial safeguards around the use of ex parte injunctions and underscores the importance of jurisdictional limits in commercial litigation, particularly in disputes involving major corporate assets and strategic sectors such as oil and gas.
The case is being closely watched by investors, lenders, and stakeholders in Nigeria’s energy industry, given its potential implications for financing structures, asset protection mechanisms, and the broader investment climate in Africa’s largest oil producer.
