Shell PLC mentioned Thursday it had accomplished the divestment of its Niger Delta subsidiary to a Nigerian consortium, in a $1.3 billion transaction beforehand held again by regulators.
Renaissance Africa Vitality Holdings has taken over Shell Petroleum Growth Firm of Nigeria Ltd. (SPDC) and consequently now owns a 30 p.c working stake within the SPDC Joint Enterprise (JV).
The SPDC JV holds 15 onshore oil mining leases (OMLs) and three shallow-water OMLs which have been stricken by oil spills, most of which the British vitality large has blamed on oil theft and sabotage.
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Nigerian Nationwide Petroleum Co. Ltd. is almost all proprietor of the SPDC JV holding 55 p.c. TotalEnergies SE owns 10 p.c however has entered right into a deal to divest this to Chappal Energies Mauritius Ltd. for $860 million. Eni SpA owns the remaining 5 p.c, beforehand held through Nigerian Agip Oil Co. Ltd. (NAOC). The Italian state-controlled firm bought NAOC to native participant Oando PLC for almost $800 million final 12 months however has determined to retain its SPDC JV stake.
“The divestment of SPDC aligns with Shell’s intent to simplify its presence in Nigeria by an exit of onshore oil manufacturing within the Niger Delta and a spotlight of future disciplined funding in its Deepwater and Built-in Gasoline positions”, Shell mentioned in an internet assertion Thursday.
Eni and TotalEnergies additionally mentioned their divestments permit them to concentrate on offshore belongings within the West African nation.
“No vital impairments are anticipated because of completion of the transaction”, Shell added.
The transaction, introduced January 16, 2024, had been held again by regulators over considerations concerning the means of the potential new house owners to handle the belongings, together with their related environmental liabilities.
“For the independents who’re coming in onshore, we need to ensure that they align with our targets of quickly rising manufacturing”, Olu Verheijen, President Bola Tinubu’s particular adviser on vitality, was quoted as saying in a Bloomberg report October 30, 2024, talking of points about Shell’s exit. “They should guarantee that there’s a technical and monetary capability and that among the obligations that must be addressed are being addressed”.
On April 29, 2024, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Fee introduced plans to evaluate environmental liabilities earlier than it may permit Shell to finish the divestment.
In its announcement of the divestment settlement with Renaissance, Shell mentioned, “The transaction has been designed to protect the complete vary of SPDC’s working capabilities following the change of possession”.
“This consists of the technical experience, administration techniques and processes that SPDC implements on behalf of all the businesses within the SPDC Joint Enterprise”, Shell added.
Nigeria has seen a spate of divestments by worldwide vitality majors. Norway’s majority state-owned Equinor ASA mentioned December 6, 2024, it had exited Nigeria after the completion of a $1.2 billion sale that included a 20.21 p.c stake within the Agbami oil subject. Seplat Vitality PLC introduced December 12, 2024, it had accomplished the acquisition of Mobil Producing Nigeria Limitless from Exxon Mobil Corp.
To contact the creator, e mail jov.onsat@rigzone.com
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