Seplat Energy prolongs buyout date for ExxonMobil’s Nigerian business

Business Developments & Projects

Nigerian oil and gas company Seplat Energy has extended the share sale and purchase agreement (SSPA), which will enable it to add shallow water assets owned by ExxonMobil’s subsidiary, Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited (MPNU), to its asset portfolio.

Illustration; Source: Seplat Energy

According to the Nigerian firm, the reason behind the extension is the desire to preserve this transaction until certain legal matters are resolved and applicable regulatory approvals are received. Other aspects of the transaction, such as the headline consideration, effective date, and contingent payment structure, remain unchanged.

While continuing to engage key stakeholders, Seplat reaffirmed its commitment to completing the transaction, which was originally expected to be closed in Q2 2022.

When the deal for the acquisition was announced in February 2022, the oil and gas player reported signing a $1.28 billion purchase agreement following the November 2021 announcement of its plan to buy ExxonMobil’s shallow water assets in Nigeria.

This is the second extension, after the company requested the first one a year ago, on May 24, 2023. On that occasion, the SSPA was revised to include ExxonMobil as the recipient of a portion of Seplat Energy’s profits in the period between the effective economic date of the transaction and its completion date.

ExxonMobil has recently been exploring various decarbonization avenues, one of them being a plan to build the world’s largest low-carbon hydrogen production facility in Texas.

The timeline for the development of the oil and gas major’s Golden Pass LNG (GPX) export terminal project in Sabine Pass, Texas, led in conjunction with QatarEnergy, might need to be revised due to a recent setback as the lead contractor filed for bankruptcy.