NNPCL says Initial Public Offer at final stage
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) is in the final stages of preparing for its Initial Public Offering (IPO), a move aimed at listing the company on the capital market in compliance with the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) of 2021. This development was announced by Olugbenga Oluwaniyi, NNPC Ltd’s Chief Finance and Investor Relations Officer, during a consultative meeting with partners at the NNPC Towers in Abuja on Thursday.
To facilitate this transition, NNPC Ltd has initiated an “IPO Beauty Parade,” engaging with prospective partners to ensure adherence to capital market regulations ahead of the public offering. The company is seeking collaborations in three key areas: Investor Relations, IPO Readiness Advisers, and Investment Banking Partners. Partners will be selected based on the strength of their proposals and their ability to provide comprehensive support in these domains.
An IPO allows institutional investors to purchase shares in a company for the first time, officially introducing NNPC Ltd to the stock market. This initiative aligns with the PIA’s mandate for NNPC Ltd to transition from a state-owned entity to a fully commercial enterprise, adhering to the provisions of the Company and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) of 1990. The move is expected to enhance corporate governance, attract private sector investment, and boost operational efficiency within Nigeria’s oil and gas industry.
NNPC Ltd operates joint ventures with major oil companies, contributing to more than half of Nigeria’s oil production. The transition to a fully commercial entity in 2021 means that NNPC Ltd no longer relies on state funds and must raise funding independently. Despite the legal requirement to list shares within six months of the PIA’s enactment in 2021, the company has yet to fulfill this obligation.
The planned IPO represents a significant shift in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector, potentially leading to increased transparency, efficiency, and profitability for NNPC Ltd. The ongoing IPO Beauty Parade will determine the best partners to guide the company through this crucial phase, ensuring a successful public offering that could positively impact the Nigerian economy and the global oil and gas market.
