White & Case

Nigeria
New law firm takes on Abuja arbitration cases before the ICSID

Keen to bring two proceedings with the World Bank's dispute settlement body to a close, the Nigerian government has just retained the services of a US legal practice.

Gabon
Behind the scenes of Oligui Nguema's $3bn Trafigura deal

The president has chosen the Swiss trading giant to secure a credit line based on crude oil shipments. This move, which means Vitol loses out, is intended to bolster foreign exchange reserves ahead of IMF talks.

Sudan
Sudan fails to derail lawsuit over alleged 9/11 support

On 3 September, the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit dismissed an appeal brought by Christopher Curran, a lawyer at White & Case, which is representing Sudan in this case.

The New Guard
Benin, Namibia, Uganda

Every Wednesday, Africa Intelligence spotlights a new generation of movers and shakers in business and politics.

Benin Olivier Pognon, state lawyer taking on multinationals

Namibia Emma Theofelus, new voice of transitional presidency

Uganda Resty Nabaggala, young founder of Here for Her

The New Guard
Nigeria, Kenya, Somalia

Every Wednesday, Africa Intelligence spotlights a new generation of movers and shakers in business and politics.

Nigeria Tolu Obamuroh, Abuja's young legal eagle

Kenya Wanjiku Thiga fights rising femicide rates

Somalia Mohamed Osman, the president's economic expert

Central African Republic
Lawyer Mboli-Goumba turns against Axmin over Ndassima gold mine

Lawyer Crépin Mboli-Goumba will no longer be representing Aurafrique, the Central African subsidiary of Canada’s Axmin, in its fight to regain control of the Ndassima mine.

DRC
$20m loan at heart of Afriland arbitration case against Kinshasa

Afriland First Bank has taken the Congolese state to arbitration, accusing it of having expropriated its subsidiary in the DRC. It is also looking to find out why a $20m loan made to a company reputed to be close to the DRC authorities was, allegedly, never repaid.

Liberia
Details of Liberia's secret deal with ArcelorMittal revealed

Africa Intelligence has gained access to the confidential deal which gives the global steel giant a virtual monopoly on iron ore in Liberia at the expense of Solway Mining.

Nigeria
Blocks 321 and 323: KNOC and Abuja gear up for battle before ICSID

Nigeria and Korea National Oil Corp (KNOC) have each picked an arbitrator to represent them before ICSID in the long-running dispute over the OLP 321 and 323 oil fields.

Nigeria
Korea's KNOC takes its dispute with Abuja over Blocks 321 et 323 to arbitration

After having exhausted its appeal rights in Nigeria, the Korea National Oil Corp has asked the ICSID to settle its dispute with the Nigerian state over blocks 321 and 323.

Guinea, Liberia
Robert Friedland hits pause button in Guinea, Liberia

The US-Canadian mining magnate is grappling with political uncertainty in Monrovia and Conakry. While waiting for things to settle down, he has suspended most of his works and has put hundreds of employees on standby.

DRC
Tshisekedi launches final attack against Dan Gertler

The Israeli businessman is now entirely surrounded after losing all support in the US, Israel and Kinshasa. The Congolese president is preparing to strike a blow by enquiring about lawyers to take legal action against Gertler's companies operating in the DRC.

Spotlight | Sudan
Biden's massive aid plan stumbles

As Afghanistan crumbles, Washington is keen to show its backing for the Sudanese transition which is a rare case of a country breaking free from its fiercely anti-US Islamic government. But despite massive loan announcements, this support is failing to materialise into concrete projects.

Spotlight | Sudan, United States
USAID gets off to inauspicious start in tackling Sudan's debt

With the United States, France and the United Kingdom all vying to become the partner of choice of the new regime in Sudan, the American development agency USAID, which was to select and finance an advisory bank to assist Sudan in restructuring its debt, has fluffed its lines and the tender call currently remains in limbo.

Nigeria
Belgian billionaire Eddy Van Den Broeke misfires with Greenville LNG

The Belgian cement magnate turned oil tycoon Eddy Van Den Broeke is struggling to get his first small-scale LNG project off the ground in Nigeria. On top of which, he is facing a $9m claim from his subcontractor Baker Hughes.

Kenya
Stock market assaults on power producer Ormat impact its Kenyan projects

In a story that Africa Intelligence has been following since last autumn, the multiple private investigations into the Israeli-American geothermal energy producer Ormat, which is very active in Kenya, have given rise since the beginning of this month to a series of stock market offensives against the company, which is listed in New York and Tel Aviv.