Chinese firm, Zhongshang Fucheng Industrial Investment Ltd, has taken control of two properties in Liverpool, United Kingdom, linked to the Nigerian government, following Nigeria’s failure to comply with an arbitration judgment issued in 2021.
Daily Query gathered that the properties located at 15 Aigburth Hall Road and Beech Lodge, 49 Calderstones Road, were targeted after a December 2021 British court order allowed Zhongshang to seize Nigerian assets in the UK to recover a $70 million payment that remained unpaid as of August 20, 2024, with a monthly interest rate of two percent.
The arbitration case, which originated from a dispute between Zhongshang and Ogun State, awarded the company $55,675,000 in damages, $9,400,000 in interest, and £2,864,445 in costs as of the March 26, 2021 verdict.
The conflict arose after Ogun State revoked Zhongshang’s rights to a free trade zone in 2016, which the company argued violated a 2001 trade treaty between Nigeria and China.
Zhongshang initiated arbitration proceedings against Nigeria in 2018, alleging that the Nigerian federal authorities, including the police, immigration, and export processing authority, were improperly used by Ogun State.
Court documents revealed that two Zhongshang executives were expelled from Nigeria in 2016, with one reportedly detained and tortured by the police.
This case has added to Nigeria’s legal troubles, coming shortly after the country narrowly avoided a separate arbitration ruling that would have awarded over $11 billion to the consortium P&ID. That verdict was overturned when it was discovered that P&ID’s owners were involved in bribery and corruption.
However, the Zhongshang case appears to be more challenging, as several European courts, including those in the UK, Belgium, and France, have already granted enforcement orders allowing Zhongshang to seize Nigerian-owned assets. Additionally, an appellate panel in the United States recently denied Nigeria’s request for sovereign immunity, further complicating the country’s efforts to resist Zhongshang’s recovery actions.
