The Nigerian Government has announced the recovery of $210 million following a hard-fought legal battle against Process and Industrial Development Limited over a failed gas contract.

Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, revealed the development on Thursday evening while receiving members of the legal team that represented Nigeria in the UK arbitration case.

Fagbemi stated that the recovered funds consist of $200 million, which the government had earlier deposited as security, along with $10 million from a $20 million award granted to Nigeria after the case was overturned.

The remaining $10 million is currently being disputed by P&ID in court.

Commending the legal team, the AGF specifically praised Shaistah Akhtar, head of the delegation, and Kofo Salam-Alada, former Director of Legal in the Justice Ministry, for their crucial roles in securing Nigeria’s victory in the $11 billion legal battle.

“The whole country has celebrated our success in the P&ID case and applauded my resilience and determination not to negotiate or settle with the fraudsters, but many do not know that my strength was derived from the dedication of the FGN-P&ID coordinating team led by Kofo Salam-Alada,” Fagbemi stated.

He also took the opportunity to bid farewell to Salam-Alada, who is retiring from public service.

Akhtar, meanwhile noted that Nigeria’s case was among the 14 per cent of international arbitral awards that have been successfully overturned, calling the outcome a rare and significant legal victory for the country.