Fakoyejo Olalekan
After its plan to acquire oil and gas assets from ExxonMobil Corporation before Bola Tinubu became President failed, the Chief Executive Officer of Seplat Energy, Roger Brown, is now hoping the new administration will approve the acquisition.
Recall that Brown had stated in the company’s financials for 2022 period that Seplat hopes to acquire the acquire oil and gas assets ExxonMobil owns in Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited (MPNU) before Tinubu’s administration takes over Muhammadu Buhari.
Join our WhatsApp ChannelDrama trails Seplat and ExxonMobil deal
His statement followed the delay of the $1.6 billion deal by Buhari’s administration after the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), the oil industry’s regulator, blocked the purchase.
Buhari had previously approved the deal in his capacity as the Minister of Petroleum, which he doubled as with his presidential role.
However, NMDPRA said the minister of petroleum doesn’t have the final approval ahead of the oil regulator. Following the statement, Buhari withdrew his approval for the deal announced in February 2022.
Also, the NNPC said it has the right of first refusal on acquiring the assets as a co-shareholder in MPNU before ExxonMobil can consider other prospective buyers.
NNPC said it is interested in the shares ExxonMobil is selling, and as a result, the deal has been stalled for over a year.
Seplat’s Roger Brown betting on Tinubu’s support
With Buhari’s administration gone, Brown is betting on Tinubu’s government to approve the deal which he said is going to be a game-changer, “We are still interested in the assets. We still like the company we’re buying. We think it’s a game-changing operation,” Bloomberg quoted him in a report on Wednesday.
Speaking on NNPC’s interest in MPNU oil license and its move against Seplat, Brown said what his company is interested in different, “What we are buying are shares sold by US companies, so that is a completely different animal because we are buying a company. Exxon’s read of the situation is the same,” the CEO noted.
Meanwhile, three weeks ago, top directors at ExxonMobil had visited Tinubu after he was inaugurated as Nigeria’s president. Their visit comes amid the disagreement with NNPC over their deal with Seplat Energy.
