Supreme Court Orders Release of Tamara Tokoni Crude Oil to General Hydrocarbons
The Supreme Court has ordered the immediate release of the crude oil aboard the FPSO Tamara Tokoni to General Hydrocarbons Limited, ending a protracted legal battle with First Bank of Nigeria. In a unanimous judgment delivered on Friday, a five‑justice panel—Uwani Musa Abba Aji, Adamu Jauro, Emmanuel Agim, Tijjani Abubakar, and Habeeb Adewale Abiru—ruled that the dispute was purely contractual and did not qualify as an admiralty matter, meaning the Federal High Court lacked jurisdiction to hear the case. The court therefore overturned the Court of Appeal's earlier decision and upheld GHL’s appeal, directing the Chief Registrar of the Court of Appeal and the Admiralty Marshal to hand over the cargo without delay.
The ruling settles the ownership and control question of the crude stored on the floating production, storage and offloading vessel, providing clarity on the jurisdictional boundaries between admiralty and contractual disputes in Nigeria’s oil sector. It also removes a legal cloud over the cargo, allowing GHL to proceed with its intended use or sale of the oil.
For stakeholders in the oil and maritime industries, the decision clarifies that similar contractual disagreements over FPSO cargoes should be pursued in civil courts rather than admiralty tribunals. Parties involved in such contracts should review jurisdictional clauses to avoid future jurisdictional challenges.