Court Throws Out $19.6m Suit Against NNPC Ltd, Says Claim Lacks Merit

An FCT High Court on Thursday dismissed a $19.6 million lawsuit filed against the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, ruling that the case was without merit and could not be sustained in law.

The judgment brings an end to a protracted legal dispute arising from a contract executed under the Direct Sale, Direct Purchase (DSDP) arrangement in Nigeria’s petroleum sector. The claimant had approached the court seeking payment of alleged professional fees said to be owed by the national oil company.

In the suit, the claimant argued that although there was a written agreement governing the relationship between both parties, the scope of the contract was later expanded through informal engagements. These, according to the claimant, included oral discussions, mutual conduct, and what was described as implied understandings that went beyond the original terms captured in the written document.

The claimant maintained that these alleged extensions formed part of the working relationship and therefore created additional financial obligations for the NNPC Ltd, culminating in the $19.6 million demand before the court.

However, the court, in its ruling delivered on Thursday, rejected the arguments, holding that the claimant failed to establish sufficient legal grounds to override the express terms of the written contract. The judge noted that parties are bound by the content of their written agreements, and that claims based on informal or unwritten variations must meet a high threshold of proof.

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The court further held that the evidence presented did not convincingly demonstrate that any valid amendment or supplementary agreement existed outside the original contract framework. It therefore dismissed the suit in its entirety.

With the ruling, the legal battle over the disputed DSDP-related contract has effectively been concluded in favour of the national oil company, closing a case that had drawn attention due to the scale of the financial claim involved.