The President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), on Wednesday, reversed his authorisation of the acquisition of the entire share capital of Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited by Seplat Energy Offshore Limited.

The move puts the Presidency on the side of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited which had earlier declined the $1.3bn transaction.

On Monday, a statement by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, revealed that President Buhari consented to acquisition of Exxon Mobil shares by Seplat Energy Offshore Ltd.

According to the Presidency, Buhari authorised the move in his capacity as Minister of Petroleum as a way to attract Foreign Direct Investment to the country.

But giving an update on the issue, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, told our correspondent that Buhari had reversed the decision and the previous misunderstanding was because the “agencies involved in (the) decision had not coordinated well among themselves.”

Earlier, Shehu, who spoke to an online publication, said the President’s reversal of his earlier approval was in line with the position of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission.

According to him, the confusion over ExxonMobil shares was because “the various agencies involved in the decision had not coordinated well among themselves and having looked at all of the facts with all of the ramifications, the president decided the position of the regulator is to be supported.”

NUPRC had, in a statement over Buhari’s earlier approval of the assets acquisition, said, as the sole regulator, it is the one that could deal with such matters. It therefore said the status quo remained.

The state from the Chief Executive of the NUPRC Engr. Gbenga Komolafe, said the Commission, in line with the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act 2021, was the sole regulator in dealing with such matters in the Nigerian upstream sector.

NUPRC said: “As it were, the issue at stake is purely a regulatory matter and the Commission had earlier communicated the decline of Ministerial assent to ExxonMobil in this regard. As such the Commission further affirms that the status quo remains.

“The Commission is committed to ensuring predictable and conducive regulatory environment at all times in the Nigerian upstream sector.”

Seplat Energy Plc had, last February, announced an agreement to acquire the entire share capital of Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited from Exxon Mobil Corporation, Delaware, for $1.28bn.

The transaction involved the acquisition of ExxonMobil Nigeria’s entire offshore shallow water asset; an established, high-quality operation with a highly skilled local operating team and a track record of safe operations.

The NNPC Limited, however, has a pre-emptive right over the asset and had last month won a court decision temporarily blocking Exxon Mobil Corporation from selling assets in Nigeria to Seplat Energy Plc.


A Judge in Abuja had granted NNPC an “order of interim injunction” on July 6, 2022, barring Exxon Mobil “from completing any divestment” in a unit that ultimately operates four licenses in Nigeria.

rusher14:
Nothing wrong in retracing your steps.

rusher14:
Nothing wrong in retracing your steps.

treesun:

Do you know the cost!
Lalasticlala!

rusher14:


Cost of what?

ExxonMobil is divesting and no Jupiter can stop it.

Just trying to postpone the day of reckoning.

NigeriaIsDoomed:
There's a subsisting court case in Akwa Ibom restraining Exxon Mobil from doing so for now.

rusher14:


Cost of what?

ExxonMobil is divesting and no Jupiter can stop it.

Just trying to postpone the day of reckoning.

treesun:

Seplat that thought they have bought Mobil!

rusher14:


No court can stop a business concern from divesting away.

Bobloco:
Government of confusion


Their confusion led us to this sorry state we're in at the moment

NigeriaIsDoomed:

CAVEAT EMPTOR

Our attention has been drawn to a publication by Femi Adesina, Special Adviser to the President (Media and Publicity), to the effect that President Muhammadu Buhari, in his capacity as Minister of Petroleum Resources has consented to the acquisition of shallow water assets of Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited by Seplat Energy.

This is to inform the general public that this proposed transaction is subject to restraining orders of injunction of the High Court of Akwa Ibom State, sitting in Uyo in Suits No. HEK/56/2018, ATTORNEY GENERAL OF AKWA IBOM STATE V. MOBIL PRODUCING NIGERIA UNLIMITED and HU/209/2020, MOBIL PRODUCING NIGERIA UNLIMITED V. GOVERNOR OF AKWA IBOM STATE & 3 OTHERS. Exxonmobil, Seplat Energy, NNPC Ltd and the Federal Government of Nigeria, all have actual knowledge of the court orders, having been duly served with the orders and/or various newspaper publications of same.

This executive interference with the judicial process of a court of competent jurisdiction is sad and ill-advised, and is contemptuous of the High Court of Akwa Ibom State. The State urges the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission to take the above facts into consideration as it considers its position in this matter.

TAKE NOTICE THEREFORE that anyone who deals with the shares or assets of Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited during the subsistence of the said orders and in the pendency of the above suits does so at their own risk. Let the buyer beware.


UKO ESSIEN UDOM, SAN
ATTORNEY GENERAL &
COMMISSIONER FOR JUSTICE
AKWA IBOM STATE
9th August, 2022

rusher14:


You do know pause is not same as stop?

NigeriaIsDoomed:
You are right but for now Exxon Mobil cannot go ahead with the divestment.

ExplorerReturns:
If it was dangote group of companies or indimi group that went into this deal will nnpc be trying this hard to fustrate it?

chrisxxx:

The first time this deal was revealed someone said Buhari wasn't aware that it was an Igbo man. This reversal has proven the guy right.

rusher14:


It's not chin-chin.

Even if payment had been made, several clauses, issues and decisions can scuttle such deals.

Even Seplat itself knows this.

treesun:


Government of try and error!

Racoon:
Buhari is not even aware of his existence let alone knowing he prevented or stopped the deal in the first place

treesun:



https://punchng.com/buhari-makes-u-turn-on-seplat-exxonmobil-deal/