NIPCo shareholders authorise board to guaranty Mobil’s acquisition

Shareholders of NIPCo Plc have authorised the recent acquisition of 60 per cent stake of Mobil Oil Nigeria Plc from Exxon Mobil Oil Corporation (EMOC).

The deal undertaken by NIPCo Investment is for the acquisition of EMOC’s 216,257,137 ordinary shares of Mobil Oil Nigeria would be for the consideration of $301 million, subject to price adjustments for dividends and other factors.

The shareholders, during the Extra General Meeting (EGM), authorised the board to stand as surety/guarantor for NIPCO Investments Limited (its fully owned subsidiary) in its bid for the acquisition of 216,357,157 ordinary shares representing 60 per cent of the authorised share capital of Mobil Oil Nigeria Plc from ExxonMobil Corporation.

Speaking at an EGM in Abuja, one of the shareholders, Alhaji Sani Yau, said the feat undertaken by the company is a commendable one, adding that it has further shown the level of  confidence in the Nigerian economy by NIPCO.

According to him, “the fact that NIPCo Plc had in the last 12 years focused exclusively on the downstream sector will give her necessary confidence and wherewithal to effectively position the company as an industry leader within the shortest possible time.”

He maintained that the confidence reposed in Nipco to put Mobil oil back into the leadership stride in the sector has started to manifest in the upward rise of its shares by over 55 per cent since the official communication by MON to the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) the acquisition penultimate Tuesday.

The shareholder said the acquisition would make the group combined retail outlets to grow to about 500 stations, bearing in mind that retailing offers veritable opportunities for upward growth in the downstream sector.

He stressed that Nipco would not only sustain the modest performance of Mobil Oil  but also improve on it and earnestly pursue our vision of being the  first choice company in the hydrocarbon industry to all stakeholders.

Alhaji Yau said after dominating the local market, NIPCO would soon extend its tentacles to neighboring countries as one of the mostly profitably run companies in the downstream sector.

He asserted that Mobil would not only be professionally managed and remained Nigeria’s integrated petroleum marketing company by exploring emerging opportunities in the industry thereby further promoting the global brand.

The shareholder noted that the deal in spite of the challenges in the industry speaks volumes of the optimism of the management to turn things around to the benefit of investors in the two companies.

He noted that with NIPCO having fully focused on the downstream sector over the last 12 years, it will be easier to quickly reposition Mobil as a leading player and expands its three plants located in Lagos, especially its ultra modern lube plant which is one of the most sophisticated in Africa.

In his remarks, Alhaji Suleiman Mohammed, Chairman of NIPCo, said the feat is laudable and the first to be undertaken by an indigenous operator in the history of oil and gas acquisition in Nigeria.

The Managing Director, NIPCo Plc, Venkataraman Venkatapathy, said the acquisition was as a result of ExxonMobil selecting Nipco as the preferred bidder for the 60 per cent equity of ExxonMobil in Mobil Oil of Nigeria after a rigorous bidding process.

He said the acquisition is an important synergy and part of a strategic to support NIPCO continuous growth and expansion in the retail sector of the oil and gas industry. He said the company would continue to maintain the Mobil brand at its retail outlets as well as continue to blend and sell Mobil brand of lubricants under blending license from ExxonMobil.