ABUJA, Nigeria — A London judge on Monday overturned an arbitration award that would have required Nigeria to pay $11 billion over a failed gas project, finding the contract was obtained through fraud.
The judge said although he did not accept all of Nigeria’s allegations discrediting P&ID and the contract, “the awards were obtained by fraud … and the way in which they were procured was contrary to public policy.” P&ID in 2017 secured the compensation award, which originally was $6.6 billion but is now estimated to be $11 bilion with accrued interest. The company’s main claim in the arbitration was for loss of profit for the 20 years the agreement covers.
Nigerian officials said the contract was signed under questionable circumstances while late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua was critically ill and Goodluck Jonathan, his deputy, was acting president. Officials accused P&ID of bribery and corruption in securing the contract and during arbitration, which the company denied.A price cap on Russian oil aims to starve Putin of cash. But it's largely been untested.