The Supreme Court has set aside an order of the Court of Appeal that froze the assets of Neconde Energy Limited, Nestoil Limited, and two other entities over an alleged $1.1 billion debt owed to FBNQuest Merchant Bank Limited and First Trustees Limited.
In a judgment delivered by a five-man panel, the apex court held that the Court of Appeal exceeded its jurisdiction in granting an ex parte application affecting Nestoil Limited.
Justice Stephen Adah, who delivered the lead judgment, faulted the appellate court for issuing injunctive orders against Neconde and Nestoil in a matter that, according to the court, was not properly before it.
The Supreme Court also criticised what it described as an abuse of judicial process, particularly the Court of Appeal’s decision to grant a stay of proceedings at the Federal High Court in Lagos.
The dispute stems from debt recovery proceedings initiated by FBNQuest Merchant Bank Limited and First Trustees Limited against Nestoil and Neconde Energy, arising from financing arrangements linked to oil assets and operations.
In October 2025, the Federal High Court in Lagos had granted an ex parte Mareva injunction freezing the companies’ assets, bank accounts, and shares across more than 20 financial institutions.
The companies subsequently challenged the order, arguing that it had lapsed after 14 days under the Federal High Court Civil Procedure Rules following the filing of a motion to discharge it.
In November 2025, Justice Daniel Osiagor held that the ex parte order had expired by operation of law and was no longer in force.
However, on November 29, 2025, Justice Yargata Nimpar of the Court of Appeal granted an interim restorative injunction restoring control of Nestoil’s assets to a receiver-manager appointed by the lenders and setting aside steps taken after the November 20 ruling.
That decision has now been set aside by the Supreme Court, effectively restoring the matter to the trial court for continuation while allowing Neconde and Nestoil to resume control of their operations pending further proceedings.
