Court Bailiffs on Wednesday, September 23, enforced court orders against properties linked to Abdulrahman Musa Bashar, chairman of Rahamaniyya Group of companies, in Lagos and Abuja over an approximately $40 million debt dispute involving Petrichor Energy FZCO.
The enforcement followed a February 25, order of the Federal High Court, Lagos judicial division, granting Petrichor leave to register a judgment of the High Court of Justice of England and Wales for enforcement in Nigeria.
The Federal High Court subsequently issued writs of attachment and sale dated May 15, directing enforcement against assets linked to Bashar and, under a separate writ, Bashar and Ultimate Oil & Gas FZCO.
The dispute arose from transactions involving the supply of gasoil and Jet A1 aviation fuel by Petrichor Energy, formerly known as CE Energy DMCC, to Ultimate Oil & Gas.
According to court documents, the parties initially entered into five spot contracts before signing a term contract on April 25, 2023. Ultimate reportedly paid for some of the products but later defaulted on interest and demurrage payments.
Petrichor commenced arbitration proceedings at the Dubai International Arbitration Centre in November 2023 to recover outstanding payments. Two additional cargoes were subsequently supplied under the term contract, but Ultimate again failed to meet its payment obligations.
On January 14, 2024, the parties entered into an agreement to restructure Ultimate’s outstanding obligations. As security for the company’s obligations, nine undated cheques were issued and signed by Bashar, who also provided a personal guarantee.
The cheques were later returned unpaid over what court documents described as irregular signatures. Petrichor subsequently pursued legal action over the outstanding debt.
In February 2025, the English High Court entered summary judgments against Ultimate and Bashar. Ultimate was ordered to pay AED22.8 million, while Bashar was ordered to pay AED122.1 million under his personal guarantee, in addition to interest and costs.
A further payment agreement was reached in April 2025, but the court later found that Ultimate defaulted on several instalments despite extensions and partial payments.
The outstanding sums under the judgments were put at approximately $32.7 million against Bashar and $7.5 million against Ultimate, bringing the total to about $40 million.
On March 30, the United Kingdom High Court granted a worldwide freezing order against Bashar and Ultimate over the unpaid debt. The order covered assets in Nigeria, the United Arab Emirates, the United Kingdom and France.
The Nigerian writs directed the sheriff to recover the judgment debt through the attachment and sale of goods and chattels belonging to the respondents, as well as the seizure of specified monetary and financial assets.
During Wednesday’s enforcement, court officials served and posted documents at properties linked to Bashar in Lagos and Abuja.
In Abuja, the enforcement team pasted the court order on the gate of a property on Panama Crescent, Maitama, and sealed the property.
The team also visited Bashar’s main residence on Logone Close, Maitama, where the enforcement was reportedly met with resistance.
In Lagos, officials encountered resistance at a property in Parkview estate, Ikoyi, but eventually gained access, although they could not obtain the keys to the apartment.
The enforcement proceedings represent the latest stage of Petrichor Energy’s efforts to recover the judgment debt following proceedings in Nigeria, the United Kingdom, the United Arab Emirates and Dubai.
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