18th June, 2014
Nigeria’s oil minister, Diezani Alison Madueke, has finally given her consent to the acquisition of Conoco-Phillips Nigerian asset by Oando, the leading Nigerian indigenous oil company.
Oando Energy Resources Inc., a today announced receipt of the consent of the Minister, which will enable Oando formally acquire the Nigerian Upstream Oil and Gas Business of ConocoPhillips for a total cash consideration of $1.65 Billion subject to customary adjustments.
The consummation of the acquisition had been delayed for months by Oando, even after the company was able to raise the cash and loans to pay off Conoco-Phillips.
Commenting, Mr. Wale Tinubu, Chairman, OER said, “We are delighted to receive the approval of the Honourable Minister of Petroleum Resources for the completion of the acquisition. It has been a long journey, wherein we kept faith with our strategy and executed every milestone diligently. This acquisition satisfies our criteria for assets in production, as well as excellent appraisal and exploration prospects. The coast now stands clear for us to immediately complete the acquisition.”
Oando said it will now work with ConocoPhillips towards completing the acquisition by the long stop date of June 30, 2014 or shortly thereafter.