Shell Plc’s agreement to sell its Nigerian domestic gas distribution business to Vaaris Energy Ltd. puts a pipeline network serving more than 130 industrial and commercial customers in the hands of a board drawn from the country’s indigenous oil industry.
Shell said Tuesday it will sell its entire interest in Shell Nigeria Gas Group, which includes Shell Nigeria Gas Holding B.V., the Dutch entity set up in 2019 that holds all but one share of Shell Nigeria Gas Ltd. Financial terms weren’t disclosed. The deal still needs regulatory approvals, and no closing date has been given.
The business, established in 1998, runs about 170 kilometers of pipeline across Ogun, Abia and Rivers states. Shell says it will keep serving customers until the deal closes.
“We believe this agreement provides a much stronger platform for the business’ next chapter under new ownership,” Elohor Aiboni, Shell’s country chair in Nigeria, said in the statement. Shell said it will keep its focus on deepwater and integrated gas in Nigeria, including its stake in Nigeria LNG.
The buyer’s directors have deep roots in Nigerian oil. Several of them built companies from the ground up, and a few came through Seplat Energy, the Lagos-listed producer that became the model for local firms buying assets from international majors.
The chairman
Tubotein “Tein” George chairs Vaaris. He has more than 30 years in the industry, spanning exploration and production, engineering, fabrication, logistics, power and finance.
George chairs Aveon Offshore Ltd., which describes itself as Nigeria’s largest locally owned oil and gas fabrication facility. He also chairs Pyramid Regal Services Ltd., owner of The George Hotel in Lagos, and runs Seametric Engineering Ltd. and Sealand Oilfield Services Ltd. as managing director.
He sits on the board of Prime Exploration and Production Ltd., holder of the OML 11 Asaramatoru marginal field, and of West Power and Gas Ltd., an investor in Eko Electricity Distribution Plc.
He started in banking at First City Merchant Bank and later moved to Citibank Nigeria, where he handled oil and gas clients in treasury and corporate banking. He holds an MBA from the University of Lagos and a finance degree from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka. He also chairs two charitable foundations focused on education and health.
Read also: Shell agrees to sell Nigeria gas distribution unit to Vaaris Energy
The dealmaker
Kazeem Abiodun Raimi brings the commercial and capital-markets experience. He is executive director for commercial at Platform Petroleum Ltd., where he handles strategy, capital allocation and negotiations. He represents Platform on the boards of Seplat Energy and PNG Gas Ltd.
Before joining Platform in 2021, Raimi spent years at Seplat, finishing as general manager for commercial, corporate planning and treasury operations. There he advised the chief executive and board on acquisitions and capital raising. Earlier roles included petroleum economist at Addax Petroleum, with postings in Nigeria and Switzerland, and finance jobs at Cadbury Nigeria and Citibank. He holds a first-class economics degree from the University of Ibadan and a master’s in oil and gas economics from the University of Dundee.
The finance chief
Nwangboje Uche is chief financial officer of Pillar Oil Ltd., which he joined in 2008. He oversees capital structure, liquidity, tax and risk there. His earlier career ran through John Holt Plc and Gladwyn Investment Ltd., including a secondment to Chevron Nigeria supporting logistics at Escravos, and then Polmaz Ltd.
Uche is a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria. He studied at the University of Port Harcourt and holds an executive MBA from Monarch Business School.
The veteran investor
Alfred O. Temile is chief executive of E.A. Temile Ltd. and Temile Development Co. Ltd. The latter has grown into an investment firm with interests in energy, maritime logistics and financial services, including upstream oil and gas assets and a role in Nigeria’s gas and export activity.
Temile has spent more than three decades across oil and gas, shipping and banking. He is an outspoken advocate of Nigerian ownership in key industries. He studied at the University of Ibadan and the University of Benin.
The governance hand
Johnnie Eni is chief operating officer of AA Holdings Ltd., the investment vehicle with interests in energy, agriculture and real estate. He also oversees the Austin Avuru Foundation, the family office’s philanthropic arm.
Eni previously led business integrity at Seplat Energy, building its governance, compliance and ethics frameworks. Earlier he worked in the U.K., including at HM Customs & Excise at Heathrow Airport and with the Tactical Response Command. He holds a law degree from Thames Valley University and attended London Business School.
The oilfield pioneer
Shawley J. Coker founded CISCON Nigeria Ltd. in 1986, which he built into the country’s first indigenous tubular-running and well-completion company. CISCON worked on Shell’s EA project, which delivered first oil in December 2001, and completed more than 33 offshore wells. Its clients included ExxonMobil, Chevron, Addax and Pan Ocean.
Coker was a founding member of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board in 2010 and chaired the Petroleum Technology Association of Nigeria from 2008 to 2012. He is a director and shareholder of Energia Ltd. and holds a degree from Mississippi State University.
What comes next
Shell has been shedding Nigerian assets for years and has pulled back from onshore oil. The gas distribution unit is small next to its deepwater and LNG positions, which it is keeping.
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