Chappal Energies Secures $360M Bridge Loan for Equinor’s Oil & Gas Prime Assets
On 6 December 2024, Nigerian Oil & Gas (O&G) company Chappal Energies announced the closure of its acquisition of Equinor Nigeria Energy Company (ENEC). The acquisition was completed via a syndicated loan amounting to USD 360 million as part of a secured bridge facility.
Through this deal, Chappal now owns 53.85% in the hydrocarbon leases of OML 128 and 129 blocks, including a 20.21% the offshore #Agbami field. Agbami field is one of the largest deep-water oil fields in Nigeria. It started production in 2008 and its cumulated output is over one billion barrels of crude oil. Currently, the Agbami field is operated by Chevron.
Moreover, Chappal will also take operatorship of OML 129 which includes several undeveloped discoveries such as Nnwa, Bilah and Sehki. Chappal Energies is registered in the Mauritius jurisdiction in order to take advantage of the deep expertise in financial services of the Mauritius International Financial Center (#IFC).
“This acquisition not only brings immediate production and cashflow benefits but also reinforces our vision of building an upstream company capable of driving transformative change in Africa’s energy sector. We remain dedicated to contributing to Nigeria’s economic prosperity and the development of its energy landscape through responsible and efficient operations.”
Chappal Energies MD Ufoma Immanuel
The Mauritius Commercial Bank (MCB) — one of the few investment-grade banks in Africa — was proud to be one of the financiers for this transaction to the tune of USD 120 million. Over the past decade, MCB has emerged as one of the key players in the mergers and acquisitions (M&A) space for the energy sector in Africa.
MCB (MSE: MCB) took on the role as lead financier, acted as security agent and provided the banking facilities for the transaction to go through. Building upon its expertise in the O&G sector in Africa, MCB has managed to carry out the due diligence and execute the transaction is a relatively short timeframe.
“MCB is proud to support Chappal Energies in this strategic and transformational acquisition for the company.. This transaction aligns with our strategy to support the energy requirements of African economies and their transition endeavours.”
MCB CEO Thierry Hebraud
Equinor Nigeria is a subsidiary of Norwegian firm Equinor (NYSE: EQNR) and has been present in Nigeria since 1992. At the time of acquiring the exploitation rights, Equinor invested over USD 3.5 billion for its 20% share in Agbami field. Over the past few years, production at Agbami has fallen from 36.000 barrels per day (bpd) in 2019 to 29,000 bpd in 2020.
Thus, the decision to divest was floated and Chappal Energies expressed interest in 2023. Then, the deal was valued at a total of USD 1.2 billion. The transaction is aligned with the indigenization drive of strategic resources around Africa and will contribute to move closer to Nigeria’s #Vision2030 to enhance #EnergyAccess.