KNOC approaches the Nigerian government
Posted on November 13, 2009 – 3:54 pm | by oilandgaspress.com
Korea National Oil Corp. (KNOC)approached the Nigerian government about an out-of-court settlement in a dispute over the cancellation of its oil-exploration rights in the country, the government said.
The offer was made by Cho Il-kwon, a company official, to Nigeria’s Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Odein Ajumogobia, in the capital, Abuja, the Ministry of Information and Communications said yesterday in a statement. It didn’t say when the meeting took place.
“The worst out-of-court settlement is better than any best judgment,” Ajumogobia said. The government is open to any proposal leading to the resolution of the dispute, according to the statement.
A Nigerian court on Aug. 20 nullified the government’s decision to cancel KNOC’s licenses, describing the move as “llegal.” Nigeria has appealed the judgment.
KNOC filed the suit after the government in January canceled its rights to licenses on oil blocs 321 and 323, saying KNOC had failed to pay a $485 million signing bonus. The licenses were re-assigned to ONGC Videsh of India, a joint defendant in the lawsuit.
Tags: Court, KNOC, Nigerian, out-of-court
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