The Nigerian independent oil and gas firm, Seplat Petroleum Development Company, has said that it has not received any official notification that the Nigerian minister of petroleum resources, President Muhammadu Buhari, has withdrawn his approval of its (Seplat) assets deal with ExxonMobil Corporation.
Seplat Energy’s chief financial officer, Emeka Onwuka, who made this known in a corporate filing on Thursday however said that the oil and gas firm is seeking clarification on the reported President Buhari’s reversal of his approval for the company’s acquisition of ExxonMobil assets.
Seplat said it is still in talks with relevant authorities to confirm the reported withdrawal of President Buhari’s approval.
“Seplat Energy has become aware of a news report that ministerial approval of the company’s proposed acquisition of the entire share capital of Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited (“MPNU”) has been withdrawn,” the statement reads.
“Seplat Energy has received no official notification of such a decision and is seeking clarification from the relevant authorities. We will continue to work with all parties to achieve a successful outcome for the proposed acquisition and will provide an update in due course.
“This announcement is made pursuant to Rule 17.10 of the Rulebook of the Nigerian Exchange, 2015 (Issuer’s Rule),” Onwuka said.
Recall that President Buhari, who had approved the Seplat acquisition of ExxonMobil Corporation assets on Wednesday withdrew the approval.
The reversal was announced by the President’s senior special adviser on media and publicity, Garba Shehu, who said that the reversal was made to support the position of the upstream regulators.
The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) had rejected President Buhari’s approval of the acquisition deal on the ground of “overriding national interest.”
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