ABUJA – The Federal Government has secured a major legal victory, saving the nation over N4 billion in liabilities after an arbitration tribunal dismissed a long-standing claim by construction firm Fougerolle regarding a decades-old contract in the Ajaokuta steel complex.
Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), expressed satisfaction with the favourable final arbitral award issued on November 11, 2025, by a Tribunal constituted under the Alternative Dispute Resolution Centre of the Federal High Court.
The case originated from a contract dated March 31, 1981, between the Federal Republic of Nigeria and a joint venture of Fougerolle Nigeria Ltd and Fougerolle SA, a French company, for construction of civil works at the iron and steel complex in Ajaokuta, Kogi State.
According to a statement from Kamarudeen Ogundele, Special Assistant to the President on Communication and Publicity in the AGF’s office, the claimant had sought additional payment of N3,846,098,403.00 and €185,733,496.00, despite having previously accepted a final settlement.
“The Federal Government engaged Messrs Price WaterCooperhouse to verify any indebtedness due to Fougerolle after terminating the contract,” the statement revealed. “This led to payment of N3,894,600,000.00 to Fougerolle via FGN Bonds on September 11, 2006.”
Crucially, Fougerolle had signed an indemnity on September 8, 2006, accepting this sum as “full and final settlement.” However, over 16 years later, the company initiated fresh arbitration proceedings in December 2022.
The Tribunal upheld the Federal Government’s preliminary objections, ruling the claims were statute-barred and disclosed no reasonable cause of action. The judges noted that the FGN bonds coupled with Fougerolle’s indemnity had extinguished the debt.
Even when considering the case on its merits, the Tribunal found that Fougerolle failed to establish its case and had indeed waived all rights to further claims against the Federal Government. The Tribunal also rejected Fougerolle’s expropriation claim and its assertion that the indemnity was signed under duress.
“The entire case was eventually dismissed thereby saving FGN of over N4 billion liabilities,” the statement confirmed.
The AGF emphasized that the case was successfully defended by officers of the Federal Ministry of Justice, highlighting the administration’s commitment to building the capacity of ministry officials to defend sensitive litigation and Alternative Dispute Resolution matters.
This decision underscores the current administration’s determination to challenge all predatory and opportunistic claims against Nigeria, while also promoting ADR as an effective dispute resolution mechanism.
