P&ID: Nigeria’s Reserves To Rise As UK Court Orders Release Of $200m To FG 

Nigeria’s Foreign Exchange Reserves was on Tuesday boosted by over $200m when the London Commercial Court ordered the released of the $200m guarantee put in place as security in respect of the execution of the much discredited P&ID $10bn Arbitral Claim.

Figures from the Central Bank of Nigeria puts the nation’s reserves at $36.2bn

The boost in the nation’s foreign reserves followed an order given on Tuesday by a London Commercial Court for the stay of execution granted Nigeria for the appeal filed against the judgment of Justice Butcher.

The court also awarded a £70,000 cost in favor of Nigeria in addition to an earlier award of £1.5m.

The Central Bank of Nigeria confirmed the development in a tweet on Tuesday.

P&ID had sought to increase the security to $400m, but the court presided over by Sir Ross Cranston rejected the request and ordered cost of £70,000 against P&ID.

The court had earlier in the month granted another cost of £1.5m against P&ID.

The CBN tweet reads, “Nigeria’s Foreign Exchange Reserves was this morning boosted by over $200m when the London Commercial Court ordered the released of the $200m guarantee put in place as security in respect of the execution of the much discredited P&ID $10bn Arbitral Claim.

“The court also awarded a £70,000 cost in favor of Nigeria in addition to an earlier award of £1.5m.”

Commenting on the outcome, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, said, “Due to the substantial evidence of prima facie fraud established before the Court, we are pleased that the Judge has agreed to release the guarantee.

“We are also pleased that the Court has rejected P&ID’s application to increase the guarantee, which was clearly intended to be a diversionary tactic and entirely misconceived. This release which is an accretion into the reserves will further enhance the nation’s management of the exchange rate of its domestic.”