Heirs Holdings, in partnership with its affiliated company, Transnational Corporation of Nigeria Plc (“Transcorp”), has announced the unconditional acquisition of a 45% participating interest in Nigeria oil license OML 17 and related assets, through a subsidiary of Heirs Holdings and Transcorp, TNOG Oil and Gas Limited, from the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited, Total E&P Nigeria Limited and ENI.

The transaction is worth $1.1 billion, and it is one of the largest oil and gas financings in Africa for over a decade. The financings were provided by a consortium of global and regional banks and investors.

OML 17 has a production capacity of 27,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day, and according to estimates, 2P reserves of 1.2 billion barrels of oil equivalent, with an additional 1 billion barrels of oil equivalent resources of further exploration potential.

Heirs Holdings was advised by Standard Chartered Plc, as Global Coordinator, and United Capital Plc, with a syndicate of lending institutions including Afreximbank, ABSA, Africa Finance Corporation, Union Bank of Nigeria (UBA), Hybrid Capital, and global asset management firm, Amundi. Schlumberger was the technical partner, as well as the trading arm of Shell as an off-taker.

Chairman of Heirs Holdings, Tony Elumelu said: “We have a very clear vision: creating Africa’s first integrated energy multinational, a global quality business, uniquely focused on Africa and Africa’s energy needs. The acquisition of such a high-quality asset, with significant potential for further growth, is a strong statement of our confidence in Nigeria, the Nigerian oil and gas sector and a tribute to the extremely high-quality management team that we have assembled. As a Nigerian, and more particularly an indigene of the Niger Delta region, I understand well our responsibilities that come with stewardship of the asset, our engagement with communities and the strategic importance of the oil and gas sector in Nigeria.  We see significant benefits from integrating our production, with our ability to power Nigeria, through Transcorp, and deliver value across the energy value chain.”

“I would like to thank Shell, Total and ENI, for the professionalism of the process, the Federal Government of Nigeria, the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, and the NNPC for the confidence they have placed in us.”

Commenting, the President/GCEO of Transcorp, Owen Omogiafo said: “This deal further demonstrates Transcorp’s integrated energy strategy and our determination to power Africa.”

Transcorp operates OPL281, under a production sharing contract with the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (“NNPC”). Heirs Holdings’ subsidiary, Tenoil, is the operator of OPL 2008, under a production sharing contract with NNPC. Tenoil also owns the Ata Marginal Field, which will commence production in Q2, 2021, with 3,500 barrels of oil per day.