By SCM Correspondent
PORT HARCOURT — A Nigerian federal court has issued an interim injunction restraining the state oil company and all commercial lenders within the West African nation from releasing funds to a Chinese logistics enterprise, escalating a commercial dispute tied to major domestic energy infrastructure.
Justice Stephen Daylop Pam, presiding over the Federal High Court in Port Harcourt, granted the sweeping Mareva injunction against Beijing Seajets International Forwarder Company Limited.
The order effectively freezes the asset perimeter of the Chinese freight operator within Nigeria up to the value of $117,000, pending the final resolution of a debt-recovery lawsuit.
The legal action was brought forward by Wellman Group Limited, a Nigerian maritime services firm. Wellman claims that Beijing Seajets failed to settle outstanding invoices arising from the high-stakes chartering of local tugboats and specialized heavy-lift barges between December 2025 and late January 2026.
According to court filings seen by the Financial Times, the logistics contract involved the delicate domestic transport of a 340-ton gas turbine and two massive “Giwu” industrial generators, weighing 300 tons combined.
The critical infrastructure pieces were moved via Wellman’s specialized barge, the MV Dodi Star, from a Nigerian Ports Authority facility in the coastal hub of Warri to the inland Griniya Jetty in Lokoja—a key transshipment corridor for power sector equipment.
The daily charter rate for the specialized maritime assets was pegged at $12,987.10. Wellman claims that despite successful delivery and repeated demands, the Beijing-based logistics coordinator has refused to pay the remaining balance.
Crucially, the court’s decision severely entangles the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd), the state-backed oil giant that drives the majority of the country’s GDP. Justice Pam explicitly barred NNPC Ltd from clearing any upcoming or ongoing financial obligations to Beijing Seajets “in whatever form or under any guise” related to the contract.
Furthermore, NNPC Ltd and all commercial banks in the country have been given a strict seven-day window to disclose under oath any assets or credit balances currently held on behalf of the Chinese firm.
Lawyers specializing in West African infrastructure notes that while the financial quantum of the debt ($117,000) is relatively modest by global oil standards, the litigation highlights a growing trend of friction between foreign prime contractors and local sub-contractors within Nigeria’s heavily regulated energy supply chain.
Beijing Seajets, which provides international freight forwarding and heavy-cargo logistics linking Chinese industrial manufacturing hubs with African infrastructure nodes, relies heavily on local maritime assets to navigate Nigeria’s complex river delta networks.
The strategy deployed by the plaintiff—targeting the state oil firm to intercept payments destined for a foreign logistics vendor—reflects heightened legal assertiveness among indigenous oil services providers.
NNPC Ltd is increasingly demanding strict compliance down the supply chain as it attempts to burnish its corporate governance credentials following its transition to a commercialized limited liability entity.
Neither NNPC Ltd nor representatives for Beijing Seajets immediately responded to requests for comment regarding the freezing order.
The Federal High Court has adjourned the matter until June 1, 2026, for further formal mention, at which point legal counsel for the Chinese counterparty is expected to file arguments to discharge the injunction.
The Legal Mechanism: The court issued a Mareva injunction—a powerful legal tool designed to freeze assets globally or locally to prevent a defendant from dissipating their wealth before a judgment is reached.
The Operational Impact: By dragging the state-owned oil company (NNPC Ltd) into the dispute, local sub-contractors are leveraging the state’s commercial leverage to enforce international payments.
