President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the acquisition of ExxonMobil Corporation assets by Seplat Energy PLC as against the NNPC's move to stop the deal. In February this year, Seplat had struck a deal to acquire the whole share capital of MPNU from Exxon Mobil, a deal the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited, NNPCL moved against. The Presidential Spokesperson on Media, Femi Adesina, has today disclosed that after careful consideration of the transaction and the benefit it will add to the Nigerian Economy, President Buhari has signed the deal.
In his statement, “In his capacity as Minister of petroleum resources, and in consonance with the country’s drive for foreign direct investment in the energy sector, President Muhammadu Buhari has consented to the acquisition of Exxon Mobil shares in the United States of America by Seplat Energy Offshore Limited,”
Adesina explained that “Exxon Mobil had entered into a landmark Sale and Purchase Agreement with Seplat Energy to acquire the entire share capital of Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited from Exxon Mobil Corporation, Mobil Development Nigeria Inc, and Mobil Exploration Nigeria Inc, both registered in Delaware, USA.
Meanwhile, Buhari has directed that the approval should be conveyed to both parties involved in the deal.
The statement added that “Exxon Mobil/Seplat are expected to carry out operatorship of all the oil mining licenses in the related shallow water assets towards production optimization to support Nigeria’s OPEC quota in the short term as well as ensure accelerated development and monetization of the gas resources in the assets for the Nigerian economy,”
Seplat Energy had in last Month July, informed its investors that NNPC Limited has obtained a court injunction restraining Exxon Mobil from selling its assets in the country.
