The Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC has obtained a court order temporarily blocking Exxon Mobil Corp. from selling its onshore assets to Seplat Energy Plc.
The assets, including oil wells and forcado export terminal was billed for $1.8 bn.
Seplat said in a statement on Monday that a Federal High Court judge in Abuja, granted an “order of interim injunction” on July 6 barring Exxon “from completing any divestment” in a unit that ultimately operates four licenses.
The NNPC is pressing to block the transaction and to take over the permits of the assets.
Seplat said NNPC sued Mobil Producing Nigeria Unlimited on July 5, asking the State High Court either to order that a dispute had occurred between the parties over preemption rights, or to order them to take the matter to arbitration.
Seplat said its deal with Exxon is “still valid” and the company “remains confident that the matter will be brought to a proper conclusion in accordance with the law.”
Multinationals have been selling off their onshore assets to Nigerian companies due to issues in the Niger Delta.
They blame oil theft and other forms of insecurity for the moving away from the shallow waters to the offshore which they find more lucrative.
Shell in last decade has sold majority of its assets to Aiteo, Transcorps and Eroton while Total had in April announced plans to sell its onshore assets to Nigerian players.
An order from a Nigerian court has also forced Shell Plc to pause its plans to sell all off its remaining onshore assets.
