The Supreme Court has ordered the immediate release of the crude oil aboard the FPSO Tamara Tokoni to General Hydrocarbons Limited (GHL), bringing to an end a high-profile legal dispute involving First Bank of Nigeria.
In a unanimous judgment delivered on Friday, a five-member panel of the apex court ruled that the case was purely contractual in nature and did not constitute an admiralty matter. Consequently, the court held that the Federal High Court lacked the jurisdiction to entertain the suit.
The Supreme Court therefore set aside the earlier judgment of the Court of Appeal and upheld the appeal filed by General Hydrocarbons Limited.
The panel, comprising Justices Uwani Musa Abba Aji, Adamu Jauro, Emmanuel Agim, Tijjani Abubakar, and Habeeb Adewale Abiru, directed the Chief Registrar of the Court of Appeal and the Admiralty Marshal to immediately hand over the crude oil aboard the FPSO Tamara Tokoni to GHL.
The ruling effectively resolves the legal battle between General Hydrocarbons Limited and First Bank of Nigeria over the ownership and control of the crude cargo stored on the floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) vessel.
The judgment marks the end of a closely watched commercial dispute, with the Supreme Court affirming that the issues in contention arose from contractual obligations rather than admiralty law, thereby placing the matter outside the jurisdiction of the Federal High Court.
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