Mambilla Power Project: Sunrise Promoter Reveals He Paid $500,000 To Atiku’s Ex-Wife During Mambilla Negotiations In 2003

A dispute over a $500,000 payment made in 2003 has featured prominently in proceedings before an International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) tribunal concerning the long-running dispute over Nigeria’s Mambilla power project.

Leno Adesanya, promoter of Sunrise Power, told the tribunal that the money transferred to Jennifer Douglas, the former wife of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar, was connected to a foreign-exchange transaction carried out on Atiku’s behalf.

The payment was made on January 30, 2003, through China Castle Investments Limited, a company controlled by Adesanya. The transfer was made approximately four months before Sunrise Power was purportedly awarded the Mambilla project.

Nigeria had argued that the payment was connected to the disputed contract. Sunrise Power and Adesanya, however, denied that the transaction was related to the Mambilla project. Adesanya told the tribunal that the dollars transferred to Douglas’s bank account in the United States had allegedly been purchased for Atiku using naira.

However, the tribunal noted that Adesanya did not produce documentary evidence establishing the alleged foreign-exchange transaction. According to the tribunal’s findings, there were no documents showing the corresponding naira payment, the exchange rate used, instructions from Atiku or his aides, or the commercial purpose of the transaction.

The testimony also came under scrutiny during cross-examination. Adesanya initially stated that Atiku, through his lawyers, had confirmed that the payment was a foreign-exchange transaction. He later said the explanation had been communicated to him by a person identified as “Dr Ndukwe,” whom he described as Atiku’s doctor, while a subsequent confirmation allegedly came through lawyers.

Adesanya acknowledged that his belief that the transaction originated from Atiku was ultimately based on what he described as a “logical assumption.” The tribunal said it found no independent evidence confirming the alleged communications.

The tribunal also noted that China Castle Investments Limited was not licensed to conduct foreign-exchange transactions, adding another issue to its consideration of the payment.

The proceedings also examined Atiku’s involvement in the Mambilla project and his position within government at the time. The tribunal noted his involvement in the project from 2001 and his leadership of a Nigerian delegation to China in 2002, as well as his considerable governmental influence during the first half of 2003.

However, the tribunal did not establish that Atiku personally directed the $500,000 transfer. It also noted that Atiku was not a party to the arbitration proceedings.

Ultimately, the tribunal rejected Sunrise Power’s claims against the Federal Government of Nigeria. It further ordered Sunrise Power and Adesanya to reimburse 75 percent of Nigeria’s legal costs associated with the arbitration.

The proceedings therefore focused not only on the disputed Mambilla contract but also on the evidentiary significance of the 2003 payment and whether Sunrise Power had provided sufficient evidence to support its claims.