A family dispute inside one of Nigeria’s most prominent oil businesses has now moved firmly into the courts.
On February 25, 2026, a Federal High Court ordered Oriental Energy Resources to pay $43.51 million to Ameena and Zara Indimi, twin daughters of businessman Muhammadu Indimi.
The case centres on dividends linked to a reported $435.1 million declared by the company in 2016. The sisters argued that they were entitled to a combined 10 per cent stake in the company, which would qualify them for a share of those dividends. They claimed their individual five per cent holdings were reduced to about 0.6 per cent each without proper consent. According to their filings, the changes significantly reduced what they were due to receive.
Oriental Energy disputed this version of events. The company argued that the daughters voluntarily transferred their shares and received payments in return. It described the payments as a form of settlement, reportedly totalling several million dollars across family members.
The court has now ruled that $43.51 million is owed to the daughters as unpaid dividends. The detailed reasoning behind the calculation has not been fully published in public reporting. What is clear is that the judge found merit in the daughters’ claim that they were entitled to a larger payout than they received.
Oriental Energy is a private oil exploration and production company with offshore assets in the Niger Delta. It was founded by Muhammadu Indimi, who remains a major figure in Nigeria’s oil sector. Because the company is privately held, its internal ownership structure and financial arrangements are not as publicly visible as those of listed firms.
The dispute also touches on corporate governance. The sisters raised concerns about how share transfers were handled and whether proper internal processes were followed. Such issues are not uncommon in family-owned businesses, especially when large sums and succession questions are involved.
Whether the judgment results in immediate payment or leads to another round of legal action remains to be seen.
Leave a comment