Federal High Court sets aside receivership order against General Hydrocarbons Limited and dismisses AMCON'S Suit - NEWS

Federal High Court sets aside receivership order against General Hydrocarbons Limited and dismisses AMCON'S Suit

A Federal High Court in Lagos has dismissed the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria's (AMCON) suit to enforce receivership over General Hydrocarbons Limited (GHL), setting aside a previous interim order. 

The court ruled that AMCON's suit was an abuse of court process and involved the suppression of material facts. 

 Justice Adetayo Aluko found that the suit was an abuse of court process because there was a prior, existing case (Suit No. FHC/L/CS/1903/2025) between the same parties regarding the same issue.

 The court determined that AMCON and its appointed receiver, Seyi Akinwunmi, filed the new suit in violation of clear, subsisting orders from another judge, Justice Ambrose Lewis-Allagoa, which had already prohibited AMCON from appointing a receiver over GHL's assets.

 Justice Aluko stated that Mr. Akinwunmi and his counsel deliberately suppressed the existence of these prior orders when they obtained the initial interim receivership orders on October 24, 2025.

 As a result, the court dismissed AMCON's suit and set aside all interim orders made under it, effectively revoking the receiver's powers over GHL's assets. 

The court's decision marks a significant victory for GHL in this specific suit, but the overall legal battle is complex and ongoing across multiple courts. 

 A separate Mareva injunction, obtained by First Bank in December 2024, which froze assets and accounts linked to GHL and its directors over an alleged $225.8 million debt, reportedly remains in place.

 In a related development from September 2025, the Court of Appeal had overturned a previous High Court decision, ordering that proceeds from crude oil sales related to the dispute be paid into an interest-bearing escrow account. 

The various legal actions reflect an ongoing, multi-faceted dispute over GHL's oil assets and loan repayments involving AMCON, First Bank , and GHL's owner, Nduka Obaigbena.