SML vs GRA: Court grants preservation order in dispute over US$500 million investment

On Friday, Ghana's High Court (Commercial Court 3) granted a preservation order in favor of Strategic Mobilization Ghana Limited (SML), protecting the company's equipment at 25 fuel depots throughout the nation. The equipment includes Automatic Tank Gauges, ultrasonic flow meters, Remote Terminal Units, satellite systems, power shelters, solar systems, cables, and other technical infrastructure utilized by SML in fulfilling its contractual obligations to the Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA).

The order was granted following SML's civil action against the GRA, sparked by a letter requesting removal of SML's equipment from the Bulk Oil Storage and Transportation Company Limited (BOST) depot.

Corporate Lawyer Cephas Boyuo, Esq. of SML, expressed confidence in the court's decision and the company's prospects for recovering its investment of over US$500 million. He emphasized that the preservation order safeguards the equipment until the trial, potentially confirming SML's claim for the recovery of its investment. According to Boyuo, the preservation order is a crucial development in protecting the company's interests during the ongoing legal dispute.

The dispute centers on the protection of SML's installed equipment and the recovery of the substantial investment it made in fulfilling contractual obligations to the GRA. These contractual services encompass transaction audits, external price verification, downstream petroleum measurement audits, upstream petroleum measurement audits, and solid minerals measurement audits.

SML maintains its entitlement to recover the investment and asserts that the court trial will provide an opportunity for both parties to discuss their respective positions on the contractual relationship, investments, and the circumstances surrounding the request for equipment removal.