Dantata & Sawoe Construction Company Limited has paid the full $1.4 million settlement owed to Zutari Consulting Nigeria Ltd in a last-minute attempt to stop liquidation proceedings initiated by the Federal High Court, Abuja. The payment covers the $1,257,592.83 arbitral award issued against the company for subcontract work executed at the Dangote Fertilizer Plant in Lekki, Lagos.
The company disclosed the payment in a motion filed on December 4, 2025, one day after the court appointed a liquidator following what it described as repeated delays and unfulfilled promises by Dantata & Sawoe to settle the debt.
The winding-up order followed months of litigation, including a court-approved publication of Zutari’s petition in national newspapers. Zutari, an engineering design and supervision consultancy, had pursued the debt through arbitration in London, United Kingdom, where a tribunal ruled in its favour on April 7, 2021. Dantata & Sawoe, a long-established construction firm, had been engaged on the larger Dangote project and subcontracted Zutari in 2015.
In the new filing, the company’s lawyer, I. Otim, acknowledged the court’s decision to appoint a liquidator but argued that the development should be reversed since the arbitral debt “has now been fully paid.” He asked the court to stay execution of its orders, vacate the liquidation directives issued on December 3, and allow the company’s appeal to proceed without the consequences of an irreversible outcome.
Supporting the application, the company’s Head of Litigation and Insurance, John Dalam, submitted debit alerts as evidence of completed payments, insisting that continued enforcement of the liquidation order would cause irreparable harm.
The company is seeking two key reliefs: a stay of execution pending appeal and the discharge of the liquidator appointment. The court is expected to fix a date for arguments from both Dantata & Sawoe and Zutari Consulting.
The case has a long procedural history. The court previously granted extensions for settlement, heard multiple motions, and received submissions that the construction company had offered only 75 percent of the outstanding amount. The judge ruled last week that Dantata & Sawoe had been given enough time but failed to meet obligations, prompting the appointment of Joseph Abiolu, FCA, as liquidator under Sections 571(d), 572, and 573(1)(b) of the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) 2020.
The matter is adjourned to February 18, 2026, for the liquidator’s report, while an appeal remains active before the Court of Appeal.
