Nigeria approves Exxon Seplat after two years

Nigeria has approved the sale to Seplat Energy of Exxon Mobil Corp.'s onshore assets, said the chief executive of the country's Upstream regulator on Monday. This comes more than two years since the original $1.28 billion agreement.

Since it was announced in February 20, 2022, the sale has been scrutinized as it awaits regulatory approval.

Bola Tinubu, the President of Nigeria, said that the ministerial approval would be granted within a few days following the clearance by the regulator.

Gbenga Komolafe, CEO of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission NUPRC, announced on Monday that ministerial approval was granted at a public event held in Abuja.

Seplat, Exxon Nigeria's local subsidiary, will now own 51% of the Bonny River Natural Gas Liquids Recovery Plant and 40% of the four oil mining leases, including the Qua-Iboe Export Terminal.

Oil majors in Nigeria, Africa's biggest oil exporter, have retreated from operations onshore that are plagued by theft and sabotage. They now prefer to invest their future funds on more lucrative and newer deep offshore fields.

The NUPRC has approved the sales of assets onshore by Eni’s local unit, to Oando. Equinor also sold assets to Project Odinmim.

In May, the regulator proposed that oil majors could get approval faster for asset sales if they accepted responsibility for oil spills. They would also have to compensate impacted communities instead of waiting for authorities assigning liability.

(source: Reuters)