Spin Meets Reality: OPL 245 Dismantles Govt’s Carefully Crafted Victory Story





The Federal Government’s celebration of the alleged resolution of the long-running OPL 245 dispute has suffered a major setback, as Malabu Oil and Gas Limited has issued a formal pre-action notice challenging any regulatory move to implement the controversial agreement.


The development casts fresh doubts on official claims that the dispute has been conclusively settled and raises new legal questions over the Federal Government’s recent public declarations on the oil block.

In the pre-action notice dated March 17, 2026, and addressed to the Commission Chief Executive of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, Malabu, acting through its counsel, warned against any regulatory recognition, approval or implementation of arrangements concerning OPL 245 while several suits over the asset remain pending in court. 

The letter, written by R. O. Atabo, SAN, LL.D, on behalf of the majority shareholders and directors of Malabu Oil and Gas Limited, stated that the company was neither consulted nor involved in any negotiation, mediation or settlement process leading to the agreement recently celebrated by government officials. 

This directly contradicts the impression created by the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, who had portrayed the OPL 245 deal as a major breakthrough that would reposition Nigeria’s economy and strengthen the country’s fiscal outlook.

But Malabu insists that its legal and equitable interests in OPL 245 remain alive and are still the subject of several pending judicial proceedings before competent courts in Nigeria, including matters before the Supreme Court and the Federal High Court in Abuja. 

Among the cases listed in the pre-action notice are Malabu Oil and Gas Limited v Nigeria Agip Exploration Limited & 5 Ors, Appeal No. SC/ML/356/2025, and Malabu Oil and Gas Limited & 2 Ors v Kweku Amafagha & 9 Ors, Appeal No. SC/CV/959/2025, both pending before the Supreme Court. The company also cited ongoing proceedings before the Federal High Court, including Suit Nos. FHC/ABJ/CS/201/2017 and FHC/ABJ/CS/206/2017. 

Malabu further disclosed that following what it described as the purported striking out of its name from the register of companies by the Corporate Affairs Commission, it had instituted another suit, FHC/ABJ/CS/2137/2025, to challenge that action. 

The company said it had become aware of public statements allegedly issued on behalf of the Federal Government suggesting that a settlement or restructuring arrangement had been concluded over OPL 245, particularly an announcement said to have been made around March 5, 2026, indicating that the Federal Government, Nigeria Agip Exploration Limited and Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company Limited had reached a resolution.

However, Malabu declared that the majority shareholders and directors of the company were never consulted, were not invited to participate in any negotiation process, and never gave consent or approval to any purported settlement or restructuring arrangement relating to the block. 

It warned that it had now resolved to institute an action before the Federal High Court in Abuja to challenge what it described as the legality and validity of the purported OPL 245 Resolution Agreement, including the restructuring and reallocation of interests in the oil block, as well as any regulatory recognition or implementation of the arrangement.

The proposed suit is to be filed against the Federal Republic of Nigeria, the Attorney-General of the Federation, the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Shell Nigeria Ultra-Deep Limited, Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company Limited, Nigerian Agip Exploration Company Limited, and Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited. 

Malabu is specifically contesting the reported execution of a Block 245 Resolution Agreement on or about March 5, 2026, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja; the splitting of OPL 245 into four separate assets; and the alleged allocation, transfer or recognition of interests in the block in favour of the oil companies involved. 

In its proposed reliefs, the company is asking the court to declare that its rights in OPL 245 remained valid and subsisting as of March 5, 2026, and that it cannot be bound by an agreement to which it was not a party. It is also seeking to nullify the alleged resolution agreement, stop any regulatory action based on it, and restrain all parties from carrying out petroleum operations in the area covered by OPL 245. 

Malabu is also demanding N1tn in damages against the defendants jointly and severally for what it described as trespass on its prior exclusive possession rights in the block. 

The notice gave the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission 30 days to refrain from taking any step in furtherance of the disputed arrangement, failing which the company said it would proceed to court without further notice. 

The fresh legal threat is likely to fuel further controversy around OPL 245, one of Nigeria’s most contentious oil blocks, and may complicate the Federal Government’s attempt to present the matter as finally resolved.

Far from closing the chapter, the latest development suggests that the battle over OPL 245 may be heading into yet another prolonged legal round — with the government’s victory narrative now facing serious challenge from parties still claiming subsisting rights over the asset.

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