The Court of Appeal has ordered the sale of crude oil stored on the floating production storage and offloading vessel Tamara Tokoni, placing the proceeds under the custody of court officials pending the outcome of a dispute between First Bank of Nigeria and General Hydrocarbons Limited (GHL).

A three-judge panel led by Justice Polycap Kwahar ruled that the cargo must be preserved in the interest of justice, citing the risk of expropriation and waste.

The court directed the Chief Registrar of the Court of Appeal, working with the Admiralty Marshal, to take control of the crude. Once the storage tanks on the FPSO are full, the cargo is to be sold and the proceeds deposited in an interest-bearing escrow account managed by the court.

The dispute centres on a debt claim of 225.8 million dollars which First Bank alleges is owed by GHL. The oil firm denies the claim, insisting the bank breached a 2021 Subrogation Agreement and that no payment is outstanding.

First Bank and its trustees obtained a Mareva injunction in December 2024 from the Federal High Court in Lagos to freeze assets of GHL and its associates. That order was lifted in January, prompting the bank to appeal. In parallel, GHL accused First Bank of abusing freezing orders by allowing selective crude releases to other partners, a practice the Appeal Court has now barred.

The Tamara Tokoni’s cargo belongs to GHL, Conoil Producing and the state-owned Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL). The vessel is operated by Century Group, led by Ken Etete, a relative of former petroleum minister Dan Etete, who was implicated in the OPL 245 scandal.

The case has bounced between the Federal High Courts in Lagos and Port Harcourt, with conflicting rulings over whether the matter qualifies as a maritime claim. Arbitration proceedings between First Bank and GHL are also ongoing.