Seplat Energy Plc, a leading Nigerian independent energy company listed on both the Nigerian Exchange and London Stock Exchange has announced that one of its founding investors, Etablissements Maurel & Prom S.A., has sold off its 20.07% equity interest in Seplat Energy to Heirs Energies Ltd.
The sale is at a price of 305 pence per share, corresponding to a total consideration of $496 million, with an initial payment of $248 million and the balance payable within 30 days, secured by an irrevocable letter of credit. An additional contingent consideration of $10 million may become payable, subject to share price performance over the next six months.
Olivier de Langavant, Chief Executive Officer of M&P, declared: “We are incredibly proud to have supported Seplat’s journey over the last fifteen years and its transformation into a leading energy company in Nigeria across both oil and gas. We would like to warmly congratulate and thank Seplat’s management team and successive boards of directors for their outstanding performance over the years and wish them every success for the future, as we are convinced that there is still much more to come. This investment has also proven to be a great success for M&P, delivering very strong returns since inception in 2010. We believe that now is the right time for M&P to monetise this position and further focus on direct investments in oil and gas assets, in line with a growth strategy that we plan to accelerate. We are also very pleased to transfer our stake to Heirs Energies, a subsidiary of the leading PanAfrican investment company Heirs Holdings, we are confident that Seplat will continue to thrive with the support of another strong, long-term shareholder.”
Herbert Smith Freehills Kramer and Morgan Stanley acted respectively as legal and financial advisers to M&P.
Seplat’s shares rose 11 per cent in London following the announcement, while M&P shares advanced 8 per cent in Paris.
