Italian oil giant Eni has received formal consent from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) to sell its subsidiary, Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NAOC), to Oando Plc. Oando is run by President Bola Tinubu’s nephew, Wale Tinubu.
In a statement posted on the company’s website on Wednesday, Eni said it has received formal consent to complete the transaction. During an industry conference in Abuja on July 3, NUPRC CEO Gbenga Komolafe announced that Oando has successfully acquired 100% of Eni’s shares in its subsidiary, Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NAOC). He indicated that an official announcement regarding the deal would follow shortly.
Confirming this in the statement, Eni said:
Having already obtained all other relevant local and regulatory authorities’ authorisations, this achievement will allow Eni to proceed to the completion of the transaction for the sale of Nigerian Agip Oil Company Ltd (NAOC), Eni’s wholly owned subsidiary focusing on onshore oil & gas exploration and production as well as power generation in Nigeria, to Oando PLC, Nigeria’s leading national energy solutions provider, listed on both the Nigerian and Johannesburg Stock Exchange.
Eni’s 5% stake in the Shell Production Development Company Joint Venture (SPDC JV) is excluded from the sale and will remain part of the company’s portfolio. The sale is the first approved under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) and the new upstream regulatory body, the NUPRC. NUPRC initially resisted the move but approved it after Eni obtained all relevant local and regulatory authorities’ authorisations.
The Nigerian onshore oil industry has recently witnessed significant exits by other major international oil companies.
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