The Federal Government has announced the completion of two major oil deals worth approximately $1.5 billion.
The deals involve the divestment of Nigeria Agip Oil Company to Oando Plc and Equinor to Project Odinmim.
Gbenga Komolafe, Chief Executive of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), made the announcement at the Nigeria Oil and Gas conference in Abuja. He also provided updates on the $2.4 billion Shell Petroleum Development Company and Renaissance divestment deal, as well as the $1.2 billion ExxonMobil and Seplat deal.
Komolafe stated, “The NAOC-Oando divestment has been concluded, and the signing ceremony is to be conducted in the coming days. The Equinor-Project Odinmim divestment has also been completed, with the signing ceremony to follow shortly.”
He added that the SPDC-Renaissance deal is undergoing due diligence, while the ExxonMobil-Seplat deal is awaiting ministerial consent.
The completion of these deals is expected to boost Nigeria’s oil production, with 34 functional oil rigs currently operating in the country. Additionally, 31 oil blocks are available for bidding in the 2024 Licensing Round.
This development comes after Oando Plc acquired 100% of Nigerian Agip Oil Company Limited’s shares in September 2023, and Equinor sold its stake in the Agbami field to Project Odinmim in November 2023.
The transactions are expected to increase Oando’s participating interests in OMLs 60, 61, 62, and 63 from 20% to 40% and fetch up to $1 billion for Equinor’s stake in the Agbami field.
