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•Says we saved lives, maintained operations, upheld agreements
As the dispute over an alleged $225 million debt rages between Green Horizon Limited (GHL) and First Bank of Nigeria (FBN), the former has responded to claims of fund diversion, abuse of court processes and corporate governance concerns.
The company, in a statement, emphasised that its actions were driven by the need to uphold operational integrity and ensure the safety of lives during critical offshore operations.
In a detailed response, GHL stated: “First Bank keeps talking about diversion of funds by GHL without providing any evidence. All GHL contracts and invoices were vetted and paid by FBN through their Credit and Risk teams directly to ALL service providers. FBN’s repeated failures to pay on time within the contractual framework of five days, which became up to 70 days or not at all, led to significant operational risks.”
According to the company, one notable incident occurred on October 7, 2023, when the drilling rig Blackford Dolphin faced a crisis offshore Nigeria, running out of fuel, food and critical supplies.
GHL disclosed that 93 crew members, including foreign nationals, were onboard and the rig was on the verge of declaring a MAYDAY.
“To ensure safety of life and continuing security at 75km offshore Nigeria, GHL had to enter an Irrevocable Third-Party Payment Order with one of the offtakers to pay the suppliers directly, which stabilized the operation,” GHL said, noting that evidence of these payments was shared with FBN.
GHL maintained that these actions were misrepresented by FBN as fund diversion.
“We acted to save lives and avoid an international incident. FBN’s claims of diversion are baseless, and we are ready to present evidence in court, including daily reports and logs.”
On claims of court abuse, GHL pointed out that Justice Ambrose L. Allagoa of the Federal High Court had, on December 12, 2024, issued a judgment restraining FBN from enforcing any security or finance documents related to GHL’s operations. Despite this, GHL alleged that FBN approached another judge on December 30, 2024, without disclosing the earlier ruling, to secure a freezing order against GHL.
“Is this how a 130-year-old blue-chip financial institution committed to good governance and rule of law should behave? Why the hurry to score cheap points on social media?” GHL questioned.
Regarding corporate governance, GHL criticized FBN’s proposal to appoint an independent asset manager.
“What FBN sought to do was appoint a company it could fire at any time to take over GHL’s business. We countered with a Joint Operating Committee, but they refused. This impasse led to their public spectacle of the freezing orders,” GHL explained.
GHL concluded its statement by urging FBN to meet its contractual obligations, stating that this would resolve the ongoing issues.
“FBN has not denied the Subrogation MOU or the benefits it got upfront from GHL’s intervention. They should meet their obligations, and all will be well.”
The company emphasised its readiness to provide further evidence in court and declined to make additional comments on matters subjudice.
