An office block worth £100 million ($125 million) in central London should be seized from Iran’s state oil and gas company and given to a leading international energy business to repay part of a $2.6 billion debt, a UK judge has ruled.
The property, NIOC House on Victoria Street, sits in prime real estate in sight of the UK’s Parliament and historic Westminster Abbey, and has been owned by the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) for nearly 50 years.
NIOC tried to argue that the transfer of the property title deeds to its own pension fund put the building out of reach of creditors, but the judge ruled that the Tehran producer was the beneficial owner of the property.
NIOC owes $2.6 billion to Crescent Gas Corporation (CGC) from a 25-year contract signed in 2001 to sell gas to the Sharjah-headquartered company.
Under the deal at the heart of the dispute with Crescent, NIOC was supposed to supply 600 million cubic feet a day of gas by pipeline from its Salman field, in the southern Arabian Gulf, to Sharjah. Dana Gas, also based in Sharjah and 21 per cent owned by Crescent, was to have distributed the gas once it landed.
Iran, despite vying with Russia as the holder of the world’s largest gas reserves, is a net importer of gas and has struggled to follow through on agreements to supply it.
In his ruling, Sir Nigel Teare, sitting as a High Court judge, said that NIOC “failed to supply any gas”, which led to CGC seeking arbitration in 2009. It was eventually awarded damages in 2014.
NIOC was ordered to pay $2.429 billion in December 2021 and interest on that is now increasing at $15 million per month, the court document shows. The amount awarded has been upheld by a UK commercial court and its Court of Appeal.
CGC went to court in a bid to secure payment of its debt against NIOC House. Though a “significant asset against which CGC seeks to execute”, its value “represents a small fraction of the ever-increasing” amount it is owed by the Iranians, said Sir Nigel. The property is worth between £80 million and £104 million (£99 million- $130 million).
CGC went to register an interim charging order on NIOC House, which requires the owner to tell creditors if it plans to sell a property, but it was found that ownership had been transferred to NIOC’s pension fund in August 2022.
Crescent Petroleum’s oil and gas platform in their Mubarek field off the coast of Sharjah. Jeff Topping / The National
The judge said there is a “cogent case for concluding or inferring that the only credible explanation for such urgency” in transferring ownership is that NIOC was “acting as quickly as they could to effect the transfer before CGC was able to enforce the judgment against NIOC House”.
The judge ordered that NIOC’s pension fund transfer the property to CGC, but the Iranians can still appeal against the decision.
The building appears to be currently empty but has previously housed commercial tenants as well as providing top-floor offices for the state-run company.
As a landlord it has also provided a venue for the British-Iranian Chamber of Commerce, formerly chaired by Norman Lamont, the former Conservative chancellor of the exchequer, and now chaired by Jack Straw, the former foreign secretary.
News Related
-
Cloud computing experts, builders, customers, partners, and technology enthusiasts descend on Las Vegas to attend AWS re:Invent event that runs through December 1. Photo: AWS Amazon Web Services, the world’s biggest cloud services provider, has expanded its partnership with technology platform Clarity AI to help investors and consumers advance sustainable ...
See Details:
AWS and Clarity AI to use generative AI to boost sustainable investments
-
Manchester City players appeal to the referee after Ruben Dias’ effort is ruled out for a foul on Alisson Former referee Dermot Gallagher dissects the flashpoints from the latest round of the 2023/24 Premier League season including Manchester City’s disallowed goal against Liverpool and Manchester United’s penalty at Everton. Man ...
See Details:
Ref Watch: 'Enough' of a foul to disallow Man City goal vs Liverpool
-
-
All-rounder Hardik Pandya has been traded to his former franchise Mumbai Indians (MI) from Gujarat Titans with Cameron Green moving from Mumbai to Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), the IPL said yesterday. Five-time winners Mumbai got all-rounder Pandya back on his existing player fee of $1.8mn as teams prepare their wish ...
See Details:
Pandya returns to MI, Green goes to RCB
-
KYIV, 28th November, 2023 (WAM) — A winter storm lashed central and southern Ukraine, killing at least five people in Ukraine and three in neighbouring Moldova, with snow and high winds knocking out power to hundreds of towns and villages and shutting highways, Reuters reported. At least 19 people were ...
See Details:
Snowstorm kills eight in Ukraine and Moldova, hundreds of towns lose power
-
-
Empty jars of cream cheese, bottles of juice, torn clothes and scrap wood. These are just some items that double as eye-catching decor in Dubai resident Siddiqa Akhtar’s Furjan townhouse. A veritable upcycled haven, the Pakistani homemaker’s DIY space pays homage to her zero-waste lifestyle. Her creativity is evident from ...
See Details:
Inside a Dubai home with upcycled furniture and zero waste
-
-
Henry Turner of JESS Blues. Defending school champs JESS play a practice match against Dubai Hurricanes ahead of Emirates Dubai Sevens. The Sevens, Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National When Jumeirah English Speaking School claimed the Gulf Under-19s title at the Dubai Sevens for the first time 12 months ago ...
See Details:
No Antoine Dupont but Dubai still set to launch new era for sevens
-
Henry Turner of JESS Blues. Defending school champs JESS play a practice match against Dubai Hurricanes ahead of Emirates Dubai Sevens. The Sevens, Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National When Jumeirah English Speaking School claimed the Gulf Under-19s title at the Dubai Sevens for the first time 12 months ago ...
See Details:
Why ESG investors are concerned about AI
-
Henry Turner of JESS Blues. Defending school champs JESS play a practice match against Dubai Hurricanes ahead of Emirates Dubai Sevens. The Sevens, Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National When Jumeirah English Speaking School claimed the Gulf Under-19s title at the Dubai Sevens for the first time 12 months ago ...
See Details:
Your campsite can harm the environment
-
Henry Turner of JESS Blues. Defending school champs JESS play a practice match against Dubai Hurricanes ahead of Emirates Dubai Sevens. The Sevens, Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National When Jumeirah English Speaking School claimed the Gulf Under-19s title at the Dubai Sevens for the first time 12 months ago ...
See Details:
Mubadala, Saudi Fund deals on US radar for potential China angle
-
Henry Turner of JESS Blues. Defending school champs JESS play a practice match against Dubai Hurricanes ahead of Emirates Dubai Sevens. The Sevens, Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National When Jumeirah English Speaking School claimed the Gulf Under-19s title at the Dubai Sevens for the first time 12 months ago ...
See Details:
Abu Dhabi T10 season seven to kick off with thrilling double-header
-
Henry Turner of JESS Blues. Defending school champs JESS play a practice match against Dubai Hurricanes ahead of Emirates Dubai Sevens. The Sevens, Dubai. Chris Whiteoak / The National When Jumeirah English Speaking School claimed the Gulf Under-19s title at the Dubai Sevens for the first time 12 months ago ...
See Details:
Eight climate fiction, or cli-fi, books to consider before Cop28
OTHER NEWS
Fantic Stealth 125 and Imola Concept The Italian manufacturer’s sporty offerings are designed to appeal to the beginner segment. The 125cc segment, pretty much non-existent in the US market, is ...
Read more »
Valencia orange image Perspective from Roseane M Silva Master in Health Sciences, Bachelor in Nutrition · 7 years of experience · Brazil Possible Side Effects People who are allergic to ...
Read more »
Leading grocery delivery company Kibsons says it is already answering the call for greener production processes as food security and sourcing enter the Cop28 spotlight later this month. The UAE ...
Read more »
AMMAN — The government on Wednesday endorsed the draft general budget law for 2024 with estimated public revenues of JD10.3 billion, marking an increase of 8.9 per cent compared with ...
Read more »
AMMAN — The new forecasted capital expenditure for the fiscal year 2024 stands at JD73.317 million, according to the 2024 public budget draft law. The government allocated JD1.729 billion as ...
Read more »
AMMAN — The post World War I period marks the beginning of scholarly research in Jordan. During the British Mandate in Jordan, the Department of Antiquities in Amman was founded ...
Read more »
The Sharjah City Municipality has issued a set of guidelines for the use of cosmetic products in hair salons and beauty centres. The authority urges salons to stick to these ...
Read more »