In the $2.3 billion arbitration proceedings Sunrise Power launched against Nigeria for allegedly breaching a contract with the federal government, former President Muhammadu Buhari testified before the International Chamber of Commerce (ICC), Paris, France.
According to findings, both Buhari and former President Olusegun Obasanjo were in Paris because of the case.
In his testimony before the ICC on Wednesday, Obasanjo, who had previously given TheCable in 2023, questioned Olu Agunloye, his former minister of power, on how he obtained the authority to provide the contract to Sunrise in 2003.
Leno Adesanya, the chairman and CEO of Sunrise Power, gave testimony before the ICC on Tuesday regarding the $2.3 billion arbitration case his firm brought against Nigeria.
Sunrise began the arbitration against Nigeria at the International Criminal Court in Paris on October 10, 2017, requesting a $2.354 billion award for “breach of contract” related to a 2003 deal to develop the 3,050-megawatt plant in Mambilla, Taraba State, on a $6 billion “build, operate, and transfer” basis.
In 2017, Babatunde Fashola, a former minister of housing, works, and power, referred to Sunrise Power as a middleman.
According to the minister, Sinohydro Corporation Limited, a Chinese company that is currently managing the project, is the Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) contractor that the Buhari government is directly contracting.
Sale Mamman, a former minister of power, claimed in 2020 that the parties had struck an out-of-court settlement of $200 million following multiple rounds of negotiations.
Sunrise later launched a $400 million compensation claim against the government before the ICC for violating the new accord, which changed the course of the legal struggle.
On May 11, the company’s lawyer, Femi Falana, filed a lawsuit at the International Court of Arbitration, demanding $400 million in total claims, including penalties.
The company had claimed that the amount was to serve as an out-of-court settlement that the government allegedly failed to honor, as it had agreed to pay in 14 days after it was signed by a former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, Sale Mamman for the government, and Chairman/CEO of Sunrise Power, Leno Adesanya.
The sum was to be paid “within 14 days” of the terms of the agreement being executed on January 21, 2020, according to Sunrise’s claim document.
The company also stated that it was agreed in the signed agreement that it would be reinstated as the local partner for the current $5.8 billion Mambilla power project, along with a 10% penalty in the event that the settlement terms were not met.
A follow-up revealed that the local partner requirement had been eliminated and the accord had been amended. Citing the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Nigerian economy, the federal government subsequently asked for a review of the negotiation.
Additionally, Buhari denied authorizing the 2020 settlement deal in a letter to Lateef Fagbemi, the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice.
He had stated, “While I understood that my ministers of justice, power and water resources were approached by Sunrise and were engaging with various stakeholders that were involved in the project to resolve the issues blocking the project’s implementation, at no time did I specifically instruct them to enter into and conclude any settlement agreement with Sunrise Power and Transmission Company Limited.
“Indeed, when the proposed settlement agreement and addendum were presented to me for my consideration and approval on 20th April, 2020, I refused to approve the settlement deal because I was convinced that there was no basis for Sunrise’s claim.
“I hope the above clarifications will assist you in your defence of our country from these ‘invisible contractors who all too often quietly take Nigeria for many millions in out-of-court settlements’, as I stated in my recent statement regarding Nigeria’s victory in the P&ID saga”, the former president said.