Chinese Company Lifts Seizure Of One Nigerian Presidential Aircraft For President Tinubu’s Trip To France As ‘Goodwill Gesture’

Zhongshan Fucheng Industrial Investment Co. Limited has released one of the three Nigerian aircraft, an Airbus A330, detained in France.

The company made this decision as a gesture of goodwill, considering President Ahmed Bola Tinubu’s scheduled meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron.

According to a company spokesperson on Friday, the release of the aircraft is a gesture of goodwill as they have been made aware that the president, Ahmed Bola Tinubu would be needing it for a scheduled meeting with Frances president, Emmanuel Macron.

The statement said, “Zhongshan has consistently sought to act reasonably and fairly in the course of a legal dispute with Nigeria which was not of its making.

“It has now been made aware that an Airbus A330, currently detained in France as a result of a French court order obtained by Zhongshan, is needed for the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria to travel to a scheduled meeting with President Macron of France early next week.

“As a gesture of goodwill, Zhongshan has lifted the seizure of that aircraft immediately. This will allow it to be used for the President’s trip.”

The spokesperson mentioned that the company remains committed to talks with the Nigerian government with a view of reaching a “reasonable compromise rapidly”.

Earlier on Thursday, the Federal Government reported that it has initiated both legal steps to address the interim attachment of three presidential aircrafts in France.

The aircraft, which were undergoing routine maintenance, were temporarily seized following ex parte orders issued by the Judicial Court of Paris on March 7 and August 12, 2024.

These orders were obtained by Zhongshan Fucheng Industrial Investment Co. Limited, a Chinese company seeking to enforce an arbitral award granted in its favor in 2021 against Ogun State, a sub-national entity in Nigeria.

In a press statement issued by Kamarudeen Ogundele, SA to the President on Communication and Publicity, Office of the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, the Offices of the National Security Adviser and the Attorney-General of the Federation, stated that they have initiated both legal and diplomatic measures to ensure the release of the aircraft.

Ogundele stated that these efforts are grounded in the principle that the aircraft are sovereign assets, used exclusively for sovereign purposes, and therefore immune from attachment.

Vanguard reported that in 2010, Zhongshan, through Zhuhai Zhongfu Industrial Group Co. Ltd. (Zhuhai), its Chinese parent company, acquired rights to develop a free trade zone in Ogun state. A year later, Zhongshan set up Zhongfu International Investment (NIG) FZE (Zhongfu), a Nigerian entity, to manage the project with the permission of the Ogun state government.

However, things took a different turn in July 2016 when the investor accused the state government of abruptly moving to terminate its appointment while attempting to install a new manager for the free trade zone. Subsequently, Zhongfu initiated an investment treaty arbitration against Nigeria under the bilateral investment treaty between the People’s Republic of China and Nigeria (the China-Nigeria BIT).

The arbitrators had ruled that Nigeria was in breach of its obligations under the China-Nigeria BIT and awarded Zhongshan a compensation of around $70 million.

In January 2022, the Chinese company initiated a case to seek enforcement of the arbitration award.

Nigeria pleaded state immunity but was turned away by Sara Cockerill, a high court judge in the UK, who said the country abused the time frame for appealing arbitral awards.

On August 9, a US appellant court affirmed the judgment of the US district court for the District of Columbia, that held that the arbitration award is enforceable. The court rejected Nigeria’s sovereign immunity defence.