Kenyan businessman John Huba Waka’s Oilfields accuses Zakhem of using liquidation bid to block its $17 million claim

Oilfields Engineering & Supplies Limited, a Kenyan engineering firm whose key director is John Huba Waka, has accused Lebanese construction multinational Zakhem International Construction Limited of using insolvency proceedings to frustrate its efforts to recover Ksh2.26 billion ($17.41 million) in unpaid subcontracting dues arising from the replacement of the Mombasa-Nairobi oil pipeline.

The dispute centres on an arbitral award issued on June 30, 2021, which ordered the Lebanese firm to pay Oilfields $17.41 million, excluding interest, taxes and arbitration fees. Oilfields says Zakhem is now seeking to liquidate it over a separate alleged debt of Ksh75.86 million ($583.76 million), despite the substantially larger award in its favour.

Oilfields challenges Zakhem’s $584 million liquidation petition

The dispute dates to November 2015, when Zakhem subcontracted Oilfields to undertake civil works for the replacement of the 450-kilometre Mombasa-Nairobi oil pipeline, a $491 million project commissioned by Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC).

Following disagreements over payments, Oilfields pursued arbitration against Zakhem and secured the final award in June 2021. The company says the award represents a substantial asset and challenges Zakhem’s attempt to initiate liquidation proceedings over the smaller alleged liability.

The Lebanese firm’s petition reportedly rests on Oilfields’ failure to respond to a statutory demand issued in June 2025. Oilfields, however, disputes the validity of the proceedings, maintaining that it was not legally served with the statutory demand, liquidation petition or hearing notices. It says it only became aware of the case through the court’s online portal.

John Huba Waka argues Oilfields remains solvent

In challenging the petition before the High Court, Waka argues that Oilfields is solvent and that its assets, including the $17.41 million arbitral entitlement, exceed its liabilities.

The company contends that Zakhem has not established the grounds required to liquidate it under Section 384 of Kenya’s Insolvency Act, 2015. It further argues that the liquidation process is being used to obstruct its recovery of the arbitration award rather than resolve a genuine insolvency concern.

Oilfields also points to an August 31, 2023, High Court order freezing $31.3 million held by KPC for Zakhem. The funds were secured in connection with Oilfields’ claim while the court considers whether to adopt or set aside the arbitral award.

KPC disputes Zakhem’s separate $84.1 million claim

The dispute unfolds alongside another legal battle between Zakhem and KPC over the same pipeline replacement project.

In July 2026, KPC asked the High Court to dismiss a fresh Ksh10.9 billion ($84 million) claim brought by Zakhem, arguing that disputes arising from the Line 1 replacement project had already been resolved through litigation, a court-approved consent agreement and subsequent payments.

In its defence filed through Wekesa & Simiyu Advocates, KPC challenged Zakhem’s $84.1 million demand, comprising $19 million in alleged unpaid contractual dues and $65.1 million in interest. The pipeline operator maintains that the issues were conclusively settled through earlier proceedings and a consent judgment.

The overlapping cases highlight the continuing commercial fallout from the Mombasa-Nairobi pipeline replacement contract, with Oilfields seeking to enforce its arbitral award while Zakhem faces challenges to its separate claims against KPC.