Court Dismisses Contractors’ Suit Against NNPCL Over Tantita Pipeline Surveillance Contract

The Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed a suit filed by the Incorporated Trustees of AGIP Indigenous Contractors Association and 43 others challenging the award of a pipeline surveillance contract by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL).

Delivering judgment, Justice Mohammed Umar ruled that the plaintiffs lacked the legal standing (locus standi) to institute the case, noting that they failed to demonstrate any direct or legal interest in the contract. He further held that the case disclosed no reasonable cause of action and accordingly struck it out in its entirety.

The aggrieved contractors had alleged that NNPCL and its former Group Chief Executive Officer, Mele Kyari, unlawfully awarded the multi-billion naira surveillance contract to Tantita Security Services Limited, a firm owned by former militant leader, High Chief Government Ekpemupolo (popularly known as Tompolo). They argued that the award violated the provisions of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Content Development Act, 2010, by excluding indigenous operators from a fair bidding process.

However, NNPCL dismissed the claims as baseless, defending the award of the contracts. The company said Tantita and other security firms engaged had delivered tangible results in the war against crude oil theft, including increased oil production, interception of illegal vessels, and dismantling of illicit pipeline connections.

In his ruling, Justice Umar described the plaintiffs as “meddlesome interlopers and busybodies” who had no personal stake in the matter. He reaffirmed that only parties with demonstrable legal interest could challenge such contracts in court.

Tantita Security Services, alongside other private security outfits, was contracted to safeguard critical oil and gas infrastructure in the Niger Delta. Their operations in 2024 recorded several notable successes, including the arrest of a tugboat laden with illegally refined diesel off the coast of Rivers State in April. That incident was among 155 cases of crude oil theft reported in the region within a single week, during which security operatives also recorded 38 arrests for alleged acts of sabotage across Rivers, Delta, and Bayelsa states.

The ruling is seen as a major victory for both NNPCL and Tantita, reinforcing the Federal Government’s decision to rely on private surveillance contractors to protect vital oil assets amid persistent challenges of oil theft and vandalism in the Niger Delta.