Mambilla: Malami Defends $200m Settlement, Rejects ICC Corruption Findings

Mambilla: Malami Defends $200m Settlement, Rejects ICC Corruption Findings

Former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, has defended the controversial $200 million settlement agreement reached between the Federal Government and Sunrise Power and Transmission Company Limited over the long-running Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Project dispute.

Malami said the proposed settlement was negotiated in what he considered to be Nigeria’s interest, arguing that the government was attempting to resolve a dispute that had persisted for years and had become an obstacle to the development of the 3,960-megawatt Mambilla power project in Taraba State.

His response followed a 616-page final award delivered by an International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) arbitration tribunal in Paris on September 16, 2026. The tribunal rejected Sunrise Power’s claims against Nigeria but also made adverse findings about Malami’s handling of the settlement negotiations.

The tribunal found that the 2020 settlement agreement and its addendum were not binding on Nigeria because they lacked the required presidential approval. It also concluded that the agreements were products of corruption and contrary to Nigerian public policy.

Malami has rejected those findings concerning his conduct, stressing that the arbitration was a commercial proceeding and not a criminal trial.

He said the tribunal’s award should therefore not be presented as a criminal conviction against him.

According to Malami, the dispute between Sunrise Power and the Federal Government began years before he became Attorney-General and passed through several administrations, ministries and Attorneys-General.

He said his involvement arose from his constitutional and professional responsibility to advise the government on its legal exposure and possible options for resolving the longstanding dispute.

The Mambilla controversy dates back to 2003, when Sunrise became involved in plans for the development of the hydroelectric project in Taraba State. The project was later redesigned with a proposed capacity of 3,960MW, but disagreements over Sunrise’s contractual role eventually produced years of litigation and international arbitration.

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By 2019, Malami said, the unresolved dispute had become an impediment to financing discussions surrounding the Mambilla power project, including engagements involving China Exim Bank.

He said Sunrise initially demanded $500 million as a full and final settlement during negotiations in London in November 2019.

Government representatives reportedly countered with $100 million before negotiations produced the $200 million figure that was eventually incorporated into the settlement agreement.

The January 2020 agreement provided for Nigeria to pay Sunrise $200 million to settle the dispute.

However, a subsequent addendum dated March 25, 2020 introduced another $200 million liability in the event of default, potentially increasing Nigeria’s exposure to $400 million, apart from interest.

The additional liability became a major issue before the ICC tribunal.

The tribunal examined the circumstances surrounding the settlement and the subsequent addendum, including communications between Malami and Leno Adesanya, the promoter of Sunrise Power.

According to the tribunal’s findings reported from the final award, Adesanya alleged that Malami and former Minister of Power Saleh Mamman discussed a payment arrangement under which Nigeria would initially release $100 million and the remaining $100 million would be paid after Adesanya had done “what is needed”.

Adesanya also claimed to have audio and video recordings relating to the alleged discussions.

The tribunal noted, however, that those recordings were not produced before it. It therefore considered the absence of the recordings when assessing the evidence surrounding the allegations.

Despite that limitation, the tribunal concluded that the evidence before it established what it described as a corrupt deal between Malami and Adesanya and found that the settlement agreements were consequently tainted.

The tribunal also found that Malami had acted against Nigeria’s interests and was motivated by other incentives in his handling of the settlement. It noted that Malami did not appear before the tribunal to give evidence.

Malami has categorically rejected the allegation.

In a statement issued by his Special Assistant on Media, Mohammed Doka, the former AGF said his official actions were not motivated by a promise of personal financial benefit.

He argued that the allegation should be assessed against the complete documentary and evidentiary record, including whether he ever received money or any other financial benefit from Sunrise, Adesanya or an associated entity.

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Malami also pointed to the fact that former President Muhammadu Buhari never approved the $200 million settlement.

According to the tribunal’s findings, Buhari wrote in a note dated April 20, 2020 that the Federal Government did not have the $200 million required to pay Sunrise.

A later request for approval was also rejected. On January 18, 2021, Buhari reportedly wrote “Not approved” on a communication relating to the settlement.

Malami said his subsequent actions should be considered in that context.

He maintained that when Sunrise later sought to enforce the settlement against Nigeria, he instructed government lawyers to resist the attempt and preserve the country’s legal position.

The former AGF therefore argued that it would be inaccurate to portray his role simply as an attempt to secure payment for Sunrise despite Buhari’s position.

The tribunal reached a different conclusion about aspects of his conduct, finding that Malami and Adesanya had maintained an inappropriate relationship during the dispute and had coordinated on matters relating to the settlement.

The findings have generated calls for further investigation from anti-corruption groups.

The Human and Environmental Development Agenda (HEDA Resource Centre) has called on Nigeria’s anti-corruption agencies to investigate the tribunal’s findings and prosecute any offences established by the evidence.

The ICC proceedings themselves, however, were commercial arbitration proceedings, not a criminal prosecution of Malami.

That distinction is significant because the tribunal’s findings regarding alleged corruption do not amount to a criminal conviction. Any criminal liability would have to be established through the appropriate criminal justice process.

While the tribunal criticised the handling of the settlement, its overall decision was favourable to Nigeria in the underlying arbitration.

Sunrise had sought hundreds of millions of dollars from Nigeria in connection with the settlement and was pursuing a separate claim exceeding $2.7 billion over the Mambilla project dispute.

The tribunal rejected Sunrise’s claims, including its demand for $400 million under the 2020 settlement and subsequent default provision. It also ordered Sunrise and Adesanya to reimburse Nigeria for a substantial portion of its legal costs.

Reports on the award put Nigeria’s recoverable legal fees and expenses at about $11.82 million, while Sunrise and Adesanya were also ordered to bear most of the arbitration costs.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu welcomed the ruling and described it as the removal of a major legal obstacle to the long-delayed Mambilla Hydroelectric Power Project.

The President commended the Federal Ministry of Justice, Nigeria’s legal defence team and witnesses who participated in the arbitration, including former President Olusegun Obasanjo and the late President Muhammadu Buhari.

The Federal Government has said the arbitration outcome clears a major legal hurdle surrounding the Mambilla project, which has remained stalled for years.

The project is expected to have a generation capacity of 3,960MW, making it one of Nigeria’s most ambitious planned power developments.

For Malami, however, the ICC decision has created two separate issues: Nigeria’s success in defeating Sunrise’s financial claims and the tribunal’s findings about his conduct during the settlement negotiations.

He has welcomed the arbitration victory while rejecting the corruption findings against him.

Malami said he would provide a more comprehensive response after reviewing the complete ICC award and the evidence underpinning the tribunal’s conclusions.

The Mambilla settlement controversy is therefore likely to remain a subject of scrutiny, particularly over the circumstances surrounding the $200 million agreement, the March 2020 addendum that potentially doubled Nigeria’s liability, the absence of presidential approval and the communications between Malami and Sunrise’s promoter.

At the same time, the ICC ruling has settled the immediate arbitration dispute in Nigeria’s favour by preventing Sunrise from enforcing the disputed $400 million settlement claim.

The distinction between the two aspects of the case remains important: the ICC arbitration victory belongs to Nigeria in the commercial dispute, while the tribunal’s adverse findings concerning Malami are allegations and findings arising from that arbitration and are being expressly rejected by the former AGF.

Mambilla: Malami Defends $200m Settlement, Rejects ICC Corruption Findings