The Federal High Court in Abuja has struck out the liquidation case filed against Dantata & Sawoe Construction Company Limited after confirming that the construction firm has fully settled a $1.4 million debt owed to Zutari Consulting Nigeria Ltd.
The payment covers a long-standing $1,257,592.83 liability arising from subcontract design work executed for the Dangote Fertilizer Plant project in Lekki, Lagos.
Justice Mohammed Umar, who presided over the matter, vacated the earlier order appointing a liquidator after reviewing affidavits and listening to submissions from both sides. The judge noted that since the debtor had now fulfilled its financial obligations under the settlement agreement, there was no basis to continue with the winding-up proceedings.
This development comes shortly after the same court had granted Zutari Consulting’s request to appoint a liquidator, citing Dantata & Sawoe’s repeated delays and failure to settle the debt despite having been given ample time and several adjournments. Those earlier decisions had followed the publication of a winding-up petition in two national newspapers, which signaled the seriousness of the proceedings against the construction firm.
During Wednesday’s hearing, counsel for both parties confirmed that a settlement had been reached and that the full debt had been cleared. Following this acknowledgement, Zutari’s lawyer made an oral application to discontinue the liquidation case. Justice Umar granted the motion and formally struck out the matter.
In affidavits submitted before the court, Dantata & Sawoe explained that enforcing the liquidation order would cause severe and irreparable damage to the company’s operations. The Head of Litigation and Insurance, John Dalamu, stressed that since the debt had been paid, it was in the interest of justice to halt further execution steps. The company also sought the discharge of all prior orders, including those appointing a liquidator.
The dispute dates back several years, beginning with a subcontracting arrangement in 2015 in which Zutari Consulting was engaged to deliver engineering design components for the fertilizer plant project. A disagreement over unpaid fees later escalated into international arbitration under the International Chamber of Commerce. In April 2021, the tribunal issued a final award in favour of Zutari, confirming the sums owed in dollars, South African rand, and British pounds.
Dantata & Sawoe’s attempt to challenge aspects of the petition on jurisdictional grounds in 2023, as well as its earlier offer to pay 75 percent of the debt, did not resolve the dispute. The court ultimately found the company unwilling to settle and appointed Joseph Abiolu, FCA, as liquidator under the Companies and Allied Matters Act before the latest settlement reversed the situation.
With the full debt now settled and the petition withdrawn, the construction firm has avoided liquidation and is expected to resume normal operations, closing a contentious chapter marked by arbitration, court battles, and months of negotiations.
