Nigerian businessman Emeka Offor gets respite in $111 million loan fight in London

Nigerian oil magnate Emeka Offor has secured a crucial pause in a $111 million loan dispute after a Nigerian bank settled its claim against his engineering company in a London court.

Court filings show the bank has resolved its fight with Kaztec Engineering Ltd., an oil and gas services company tied to Offor’s Chrome Group. The case centers on a loan originally used to finance the acquisition of oil assets, a deal that later collapsed into years of recriminations over who was responsible for missed repayments.

As part of the latest step, the London court has stayed claims linked to Unity Bank PLC and Offor, who acted as guarantor on the loan for Kaztec. A stay means the proceedings are effectively frozen while the parties work through the settlement and any restructuring of the debt, easing immediate pressure on the businessman and his company.

The dispute had drawn attention far beyond the courtroom, pitting one of Africa’s prominent trade lenders against Kaztec, a once fast-rising Nigerian engineering outfit that built a reputation delivering offshore platforms and pipelines in the Niger Delta.

Offor, 66, is best known as the founder of the Chrome Group and a high-profile player in Nigeria’s oil, gas and power sectors. Through Kaztec, he pushed to build a $1 billion fabrication yard on Snake Island in Lagos, championing local content and indigenous engineering capacity. He also holds a significant stake in the Enugu Electricity Distribution Company and runs the Sir Emeka Offor Foundation, which funds education and health projects.

For critics of Nigeria’s elite, the London case had come to symbolize how aggressive expansion in oil and power can collide with the realities of global finance. Supporters of Offor, however, argue that the loan saga reflects the broader volatility of the energy business and shifting regulatory winds, rather than any lack of intent to repay.

Details of the settlement remain confidential, and the underlying $111 million claim has not been fully resolved. But with the court’s order to stay proceedings, Offor and Kaztec now have room to negotiate, refinance or restructure without the immediate threat of a full trial — a reprieve that could decide whether the engineering group can reclaim its place in Nigeria’s crowded oil-services market. (Billionaires Africa)