Page 9 - AfrOil Week 26 2022

AfrOil INVESTMENT AfrOil

Additionally, Wentworth has agreed to compen- Ferguson also recognised that a signifi-
sate Scirocco by extending a loan of $6.25mn to cant number of Scirocco’s shareholders had
the latter company. This sum will be enough voted against the sale to Wentworth. “We fully
to cover all cash calls under the Ruvuma JOA acknowledge that not all shareholders view this
between January 1, 2022, and the finalisation of deal through the same lens as the board and the
the divestment transaction. significant majority of those shareholders who
Alistair Ferguson, the chairman of Scirocco, voted,” he commented. “We intend to engage
hailed the outcome of the vote at the general over the coming months with all our share-
meeting, saying: “We are pleased that this trans- holders to re-emphasise the significant benefits
action has been approved by the company’s this transaction brings in transforming Sciroc-
shareholders. Completion of this deal will ena- co’s outlook and enabling us to progress down
ble the company to accelerate its stated growth its chosen strategic path with confidence and
strategy within the energy transition sector by certainty.”
reinvesting the firm and contingent proceeds of Ruvuma, an onshore licence area in southern
the transaction into the compelling opportunity Tanzania, is operated by ARA Petroleum Tan-
pipeline that we have been developing in paral- zania (APT), a subsidiary of ARA Petroleum of
lel with this sales process. Critically, approval of Oman.
the deal avoids the material dilutionary impact APT’s contractor is currently working to
that would have been associated with the need collect about 338 square km of 3D seismic data
to fund the impending work programme on the from the block and is due to wrap up this process
project.” in the second half of 2022. ™

PERFORMANCE
NNPC data show huge increase in Nigerian

gasoline subsidy payments in 5M-2022

NIGERIA THE Nigerian government spent nearly three
times as much on domestic gasoline subsidies in
the first five months of 2022 as it did in the same
period of last year, according to the national oil
company (NOC).
Vanguard, citing newly released data from
Nigerian National Oil Co. Ltd (NNPC Ltd),
reported on June 27 that Abuja had paid out
NGN1.274 trillion ($3.07bn) in gasoline sub-
sidies between January and May. This marks a
190.62% increase on the figure of NGN438.6bn
($1.06bn) recorded in the first five months of
2021, it stated.
The newspaper also provided a month-by-
month breakdown of the payments, report-
ing that the government had spent NGN Nigeria’s government subsidises gasoline prices (Photo: World Stage News)
227.72bn ($548.72mn) on subsidies in May,
NGN503.31bn ($1.21bn) in April, NGN152bn Nigeria’s National Assembly has authorised
($366mn) in March, NGN253bn ($609.64) in the federal government to spend NGN3 tril-
February and NGN143.72bn ($346.31mn) in lion on the gasoline subsidy this year. Mean-
January. while, Abuja has spent a total of NGN2.84
These numbers represented, respec- trillion ($6.84bn) on the subsidy policy over the
tively, a 99.2% increase on the May 2021 fig- 17-month period since the beginning of 2021,
ure of NGN114.34bn ($275.52mn at current Vanguard noted.
exchange rates), a 398% increase on the April The steep bill for domestic gasoline subsi-
2021 figure of NGN126.29bn, a 35.7% increase dies has been preventing Nigeria from taking
on the March 2021 figure of NGN111.96bn full advantage of the recent surge in global
($304.31mn), a 318.8% rise on the February crude oil prices, according to Professor Adeola
2021 figure of 60.4bn ($145.54mn) and a 466% Adenikinju, director of the Centre for Petro-
rise on the January figure of NGN25.37bn leum, Energy Economics and Law at the Uni-
($61.13mn), Vanguard reported. versity of Ibadan.

Week 26 29•June•2022 www. NEWSBASE .com P9