TotalEnergies’ (TTEF.PA), opens new tab sale of a minority stake in a Nigerian onshore oil producer has fallen through, Nigerian regulators said on Tuesday, in a setback to the French oil major’s strategy to sell mature, polluting assets and pay down debt.
According to Reuters, Total agreed in July 2024 to sell its 10% stake in Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited (SPDC) to Mauritius-based Chappal Energies, one of a wave of divestments by oil majors in recent years of onshore Nigerian oil assets.
It disclosed that the regulatory approval for the sale granted last October has been withdrawn because the two sides have not met financial commitments required to complete the deal, according to Eniola Akinkuoto, spokesperson for the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission.
“The ministerial consent was accompanied by certain financial obligations to the Nigerian people with strict deadlines. However, both parties failed to meet their financial commitments after repeated extensions, forcing the commission to cancel the deal,” Akinkuoto said on Tuesday.
However, the company officials could not be reached for comments, yesterday.
But in a report obtained from its website, the company, stated: “Chappal Energies’ subsidiary, Project Odinmin, was selected as the preferred party to take over Equinor’s operations in Nigeria, acquiring full ownership. This acquisition includes the transfer of all Equinor’s offshore infrastructure in Nigeria, alongside the operational rights to the OML 128 and OML 129 fields.
“OML 128 comes with a 20.21% effective interest in the Agbami field without operational responsibilities, and a 53.85% interest with operational responsibilities in the Atabila exploration area.
“OML 129 includes a 26.93% interest in the Nnwa-Doro gas field without operational responsibilities, and a 53.85% interest with operational responsibilities in the undeveloped Bilah and Sehki fields.
“The Sale and Purchase Agreement (SPA) was finalized on 28th November 2023. CEM is actively working towards securing Ministerial approval to complete the transaction.”
