A French court has ordered the seizure of three presidential jets linked to the Nigerian Federal Government.
According to the Financial Times, the jets to be seized include a Dassault Falcon 7X, a Boeing 737-7N6/BBJ, and an Airbus A330-243, which are currently stationed at Paris-Le Bourget and Basel-Mulhouse airports.
This action follows a legal claim by Zhongshan, a Chinese company whose export processing zone management contract was terminated by the Ogun State government in 2016.
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The ruling represents the latest arbitration effort by a foreign company against Nigeria, alleging that the country has failed to honor an agreement.
In 2013, Zhongfu, a subsidiary of Chinese investment firm Zhongshan Fucheng Industrial Investment, entered into a contract with the Ogun State government to develop a free trade area.
Under the agreement, Zhongfu was to hold a 60 percent stake in the joint venture.
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However, three years later, Zhongfu alleged that Ogun State had reneged on the deal and sought to take over the substantial Chinese investment in the free trade zone.
The company claimed that a “campaign of illegal acts” against it ultimately led to its exit from the agreement.
Zhongshan initiated arbitration proceedings against Nigeria in 2018.
In 2021, a three-person arbitration panel in London awarded Zhongshan $70 million in damages to be paid by the federal government. With accrued interest, the total amount has since risen to approximately $81 million.
“It is clear that Zhongsan is the effective winner in these arbitral proceedings, in that it has proved its version of events is accurate, it has successfully resisted Nigeria’s jurisdictional and preliminary objections, it has established that it has a valid claim against Nigeria under the Treaty and it has obtained an award for substantial damages,” the arbitration panel wrote.
According to the Financial Times, a source familiar with the case revealed that Zhongshan sought the enforcement order from the Paris Judicial Court because the jets were stationed in France.
The federal government has not yet issued a comment on the situation.
