Nigerian oil regulator 'optimistic' on Exxon asset sale to Seplat
The head of Nigeria's oil regulator said he is "very optimistic" that oil major Exxon Mobil's asset sale to Seplat Energy can move forward, he told Reuters on Wednesday.
The regulator last year refused to approve the $1.28-billion sale, which some in the industry say is key to getting much-needed investment into Nigeria's oil and gas sector.
"We are very optimistic that parties to the transaction will go back, look at the position of the regulator and come back by abiding by the provisions of Nigerian laws and the right thing will be done," Gbenga Komolafe, chief executive of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), told Reuters on the sidelines of an African energy conference.
Komolafe said that Exxon "did not route the transaction" in line with the provisions of its joint operating agreement, but said that once Exxon had made proper agreements with its joint-venture partners in the assets, "the regulator will do what it needs to."
State oil company NNPC had also opposed the sale, arguing it had pre-emptive rights to the assets. NNPC has not publicly commented on whether it made an offer to buy the assets.
Nigeria, Africa's largest oil exporter, relies on petroleum for 90% of its foreign exchange, and half its budget. But production has declined in recent years due to years of underinvestment and theft. Several international oil majors are looking to sell onshore assets, but those deals have run into legal and regulatory hurdles.
Last month, NNPC said a subsidiary of Italy's Eni did not obtain its consent prior to announcing a deal to sell onshore oil assets to local company Oando, a failure that it said could have breached terms of a joint operating agreement.
Comments
Research Reports
Latest Multimedia
Latest News
Showroom
Weir is a global leader in mining technology. We recognise that our planet’s future depends on the transition to renewable energy, and that...
VISIT SHOWROOM
Weir is a global leader in mining technology. We recognise that our planet’s future depends on the transition to renewable energy, and that...
VISIT SHOWROOM
Press Office
Announcements
What's On
Subscribe to improve your user experience...
Option 1 (equivalent of R125 a month):
Receive a weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine
(print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
Receive daily email newsletters
Access to full search results
Access archive of magazine back copies
Access to Projects in Progress
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
Option 2 (equivalent of R375 a month):
All benefits from Option 1
PLUS
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports, in PDF format, on various industrial and mining sectors
including Electricity; Water; Energy Transition; Hydrogen; Roads, Rail and Ports; Coal; Gold; Platinum; Battery Metals; etc.
Already a subscriber?
Forgotten your password?
Receive weekly copy of Creamer Media's Engineering News & Mining Weekly magazine (print copy for those in South Africa and e-magazine for those outside of South Africa)
➕
Recieve daily email newsletters
➕
Access to full search results
➕
Access archive of magazine back copies
➕
Access to Projects in Progress
➕
Access to ONE Research Report of your choice in PDF format
RESEARCH CHANNEL AFRICA
R4500 (equivalent of R375 a month)
SUBSCRIBEAll benefits from Option 1
➕
Access to Creamer Media's Research Channel Africa for ALL Research Reports on various industrial and mining sectors, in PDF format, including on:
Electricity
➕
Water
➕
Energy Transition
➕
Hydrogen
➕
Roads, Rail and Ports
➕
Coal
➕
Gold
➕
Platinum
➕
Battery Metals
➕
etc.
Receive all benefits from Option 1 or Option 2 delivered to numerous people at your company
➕
Multiple User names and Passwords for simultaneous log-ins
➕
Intranet integration access to all in your organisation
