OML 245: Nigerian govt replies to Atiku

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The claim made by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar regarding the resolution of the dispute over Mining Lease OML 245 by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s government has been denied by the Nigerian government.

This was revealed by the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi in a statement on Wednesday.

Just two days ago, Atiku had maintained that the OML 245 dispute continues, despite the Nigerian government’s claims of resolution.

Atiku asserted that the government had excluded Malabu Oil, a key player in the OML 245 dispute, from consideration.

AGF Fagbemi characterized Atiku’s assertion as motivated by self-interest.

He stated that the Court of Appeal’s 2025 ruling in Nigerian Agip Exploration Limited v. Malabu Oil & Gas Ltd. had rejected Malabu’s challenge to the oil block allocation on the grounds of being statute-barred.

“It is noteworthy that although the ICSID arbitration, which commenced in 2020, received considerable public attention, none of the stakeholders now being referenced by the former vice president participated in those proceedings.

“The arbitration was not concerned with questions of ownership of Malabu or internal disputes within the company. Rather, it focused strictly on whether Nigeria had wrongfully delayed or refused the conversion of OPL 245 into an OML and whether such actions breached its treaty obligations to foreign investors.

“In light of the foregoing, it must be stated unequivocally that the ongoing opposition to this resolution is both revealing and deeply concerning.

“The persistence of these criticisms, despite clear legal, commercial, and national interest considerations, strongly suggests that they are driven not by patriotism or objective reasoning, but by undisclosed and self-serving interest,” he stated.

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